Return of the False Avatar
by JBGilroy
Summary: Danny's been dead for almost a year and a half but trouble's been brewing. A spirit has been trying to break into the Real World and escaped through a crack between worlds. Join Danny in a race against time to find Aang and get the avatar to help him stop this spirit. (rated t to be safe)(Sequel to The False Avatar)
1. Chapter 1

**Here it is. The winner of the poll.**

 **This is a sequel to the fanfic The False Avatar. If you haven't read that, you will definitely be confused. That fanfic gives a lot of backstory and explanations.**

 **I don't own Danny Phantom or Avatar: The Last Airbender.**

 **And so, on with the story…**

A teenaged boy with unusual white hair and glowing green eyes trudged through a sunny meadow in the spirit world. The flowers brushing against his dark clothes didn't register with the boy. He was too busy thinking and searching to worry about those kinds of things. Danny came to a stop and heaved an annoyed sigh. He'd been chasing this troublesome spirit for more than five months by now. It was starting to get really boring. But then again, it wasn't like Danny had to be anywhere else. He was dead. He didn't mind but doing the same thing all the time was starting to get dull. He scanned the beautiful landscape and growled angrily under his breath. He'd lost the spirit again! Every time he got close to it, it would jump into a portal pool and Danny would lose it. The same portal didn't always end up in the same place.

The problem was, this spirit was trying to escape the spirit world. It hadn't been any trouble until word spread through the spirit world that the hundred year war was over. Then the spirit began to start looking for a loop hole. It could visit the living world for the anniversary of its death, but once the day was over, it had to return. It had no choice. But if the spirit did manage to find a way out, it wouldn't be good. It could destroy the newly renewed peace and balance in the worlds. It might leave a hole for other, probably more dangerous, spirits to escape such as Koh or Vaatu. And that wasn't even considering the possibilities that the spirit could do to the living world.

"Danny," a female voice called to him. Danny turned to the woman and smiled with an inclination of his head.

"Avatar Yangchen," he greeted taking in the woman's appearance of arrow-like tattoos and shaven crown. The previous avatar smiled.

"I understand that you have taken it upon yourself to keep a certain spirit in check despite his search for an escape from the spirit world," Yangchen remarked. Danny nodded.

"I have. I'm afraid I just lost his trail," Danny admitted. Yangchen nodded.

"Then it's a good thing I found you. The spirit you're searching for, he's on the other side of the spirit world trying to break through a crack between this world and the living," Yangchen informed him. Danny's eyes widened.

"What!? Do you know the fastest way there?" Danny inquired loudly, alarmed. Yangchen nodded.

"I know a way but I can't guarantee that you'll get there in time. There's a portal pool on the other side of this meadow. It should take you near to the spirit," Yangchen answered. Danny bowed quickly and ran off in the direction the avatar had indicated.

"Thanks!" he shouted over his shoulder.

Danny sprinted through the meadow, reluctant to fly in case he missed the portal pool. Unlike most spirits that had once been living people, he had retained his bending abilities. Probably because his bending hadn't been natural. He'd acquired them after he was hit by lightning and an interfering spirit had meddled with him, stopping his spirit moving on. He became a stand-in bridge between the living and spirit worlds. Something dubbed as a false avatar. Danny jumped over a small ridge and stumbled back to his feet as he sprinted through the flowers. He grinned as he saw the silvery surface of the portal pool. He jumped into the air and flew to the pool. He flew straight into the water-like substance. The icy coldness and the lack of oxygen not bothering him since he was dead and had a special ability to conjure ice straight from his very being. He slid through the liquid and erupted out of another pool in a very different section of the spirit world. At some point down had changed to up, unnoticed by Danny.

Danny hovered above the silvery pool and scanned the desolate waste land. The sun was replaced with cloudy dark skies which flashed with lightning. There was a dead tree ahead of him but other than that there were no signs of life anywhere. Danny strained his ears and scowled as he heard the sound of something shattering. That couldn't be good. Danny zoomed towards the sound and gasped when he saw the spirit he had been searching for standing in front of a swirling green vortex with a small window showing the living world beyond. Danny turned to the spirit and growled angrily at them.

"Vlad! Don't do it!" Danny shouted forcefully. The spirit turned to Danny before grinning his vampiric grin complete with malicious fangs. His skin was tinged blue and his eyes burned a pupil-less red. His black hair stood up in two spikes and he wore a fancy white suit which had Fire nation origins. Vlad, the first false avatar. The man that had tried to sell the current avatar to Fire Lord Azulon during the hundred year war only to fail and be executed.

"You again? Don't you know when to give up?" Vlad drawled in a bored tone. Both deceased false avatars were getting tired of this constant chasing and tracking.

"I'll give up when you stop trying to escape the spirit world. You have no idea what that might do to the balance between the living and spirit worlds," Danny retorted stiffly, landing in front of the spirit. Vlad laughed.

"Well then I guess our little chase will continue, who knows we might even rival the struggle between Raava and Vaatu," Vlad commented. Danny took a cautious step forward.

"But then again, if you want to chase me this time, you'll have to break the rules," Vlad gloated and stepped through the gateway to the living world. Danny darted forward to stop the older spirit but it was too late. Vlad had already gone through and the gateway had sealed itself. Danny hammered on the diminishing window and growled furiously at the retreating figure as Vlad walked into the living world.

The gateway faded and Danny fell forwards onto the ground. He punched the rocky ground.

"Now what?!" he yelled annoyed with himself and furious at Vlad for jeopardising both worlds.

"Perhaps you should stop beating up the ground and ask me," an aged voice suggested. Danny froze and turned slowly to see a spirit hovering over him. Danny gulped down his fear as he looked at the spirit of time. He wore purple, extravagant robes fit for any king. He had a scar across one eye. His eyes and skin were similar to Vlad's except this spirit gave off an aura of knowledge and power. The spirit of time went by many names, but the one Danny was most familiar with was Clockwork. Danny nervously got to his feet.

"Er… sorry about that. Got a little carried away," Danny apologised. Clockwork nodded.

The spirit remained silent and Danny realised that Clockwork was waiting for him to ask his question.

"Um… so what do you think I should do to stop Vlad?" Danny asked nervously. He'd only met the spirit of time once and it hadn't gone well. It had been a month after his village had been destroyed by the Fire nation and he'd pleaded with the spirit to change time to reverse the tragedy. Clockwork had refused. The conversation had gotten a little too heated than advisable and Danny hadn't forgotten the spirit's punishment. Clockwork nodded and brought out an hourglass. He held his hand over the hourglass and it filled with sand on the bottom.

"There is only one way to defeat that spirit. You must go after him. You must warn the current avatar and stop Vlad from destroying both worlds. So, to do that, I'm going to give you a special offer. One week. I'm giving you one week of life. You will retain full access to your spirit form on the living plane and full control of your bending abilities. Once your time is up, you will return to the spirit world for good. Until then, you will not be able to visit. You will be bound to the living world. Do you understand?" Clockwork explained. Danny blinked with shock.

"Wait, you're going to bring me back to life for a week so I can track down and stop Vlad," Danny repeated incredulously. Clockwork looked up from the hourglass and nodded.

"Consider yourself lucky. I have been asked by a number of spirits through time and I have never granted this until now. Remember, one week," Clockwork replied. Then without another word, Clockwork turned over the hourglass and as the first grain of sand fell, everything went black for Danny.

 **I'll admit, the first one wasn't my best work, but I do think this fanfic is better than the first.**

 **The ghosts are altered slightly to be in keeping with the avatar's world but mostly they have the same abilities and personalities.**

 **Let me know what you guys think.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2

Aang opened his eyes. He was laying in the clearing that he, Katara, Sokka, Suki and Appa and Momo had made camp in. But something wasn't right. The others were gone. The night was too still and quiet. Aang got to his feet and turned around.

"Katara?! Sokka! Suki?" Aang called. He bit his lip nervously and began to walk around the clearing. Even their belongings and the fire was gone.

"Momo! Appa! Katara! Anyone!?" Aang shouted worriedly.

"Calm down Aang. They're all fine," a calm voice announced. Aang twisted around and sighed with relief as he spotted his predecessor, avatar Roku.

"Roku, hi. So this is a dream?" Aang greeted the spirit. Roku smiled grimly.

"Yes and no. Aang I'm here to warn you. A dangerous spirit has escaped from the spirit world," Roku explained. Aang stiffened.

"What? Which one? When?" Aang questioned. Roku shook his head.

"I do not know. I only know that it happened and another spirit has been sent to you to guide and help you to stop the spirit," Roku answered. Aang blinked in surprise.

"How will I know where to find this spirit?" Aang asked instantly. Roku shook his head.

"I don't know Aang. This only happened mere seconds ago. But you must search for this spirit and you must listen to what it has to say," Roku replied. Aang frowned.

"But how will I know if the spirit I find is the one sent to help me or the one I'm meant to stop?" Aang pointed out.

"I'm sorry Aang, I don't have the answers for you," the spirit retorted. Aang scowled.

"Roku," he began.

"Roku!" Aang cried as he sat up beside Appa, throwing Momo off his chest. Momo chattered angrily at the avatar before scrambling up onto Appa's back and curling up to go back to sleep. Aang shook his head to get rid of the nervousness Roku's message had instilled in him. A dangerous spirit had escaped the spirit world and now he had to find a second spirit sent to help him. And he had no idea what either spirit looked like! Aang got to his feet, now wide awake. He turned to the fire and smiled to see his friends snuggled in their sleeping bags. Sokka had managed to edge his sleeping bag closer to Suki. Katara had decided to spend the night near the non-bending couple instead of with Aang with Appa. She preferred a sleeping bag to the flying bison. Aang pulled on his shirt and shoes and walked over to the fire and threw a couple of logs on to the softly glowing embers.

He and his friends were heading to Ba Sing Se. They'd arrive the next day. There was going to be a big meeting between a number of important figures to discuss how things were going. It was going to be the first time Aang would get to see his friend, Fire Lord Zuko, for months. Toph was going to be there too. They hadn't seen Toph for almost half a year at this point since she left the group to set up her school for earth-benders. King Boomie would be there too and Aang couldn't wait to see his oldest friend. Aang had known Boomie since before the war had begun about one hundred and one years ago now. It still struck Aang as odd that he'd been frozen in ice over a year ago. Spring was coming and Aang had been freed from his iceberg by his girlfriend Katara and her brother Sokka two winters ago. The war had ended the summer previous.

Aang sighed as he began to relax. He noticed that the fire was still going out and backed up a little. With a flick of his hand and a slow sweep of his leg, the embers grew into small flames that licked at the logs. Aang smiled happily at his handiwork. He gotten a lot better at fire-bending. He then remembered the bonfire he'd lit at the festival of passion a couple of months ago. He recalled meeting his deceased friend, Danny. He hadn't told anyone that Danny had gone to the spirit world after he died, after being shot with a number of arrows, during an ambush by a group of Fire nation deserter soldiers. He sat down on the ground beside the fire and began to think.

He vaguely heard Katara yawn beside him and shifted in her sleeping bag.

"Aang?" she whispered tiredly. Aang smiled and turned to Katara.

"Yeah," he replied, showing he was listening and she'd identified him right.

"What are you doing awake? Is something wrong?" Katara asked. Aang shook his head.

"I had a dream and woke up. I'll explain tomorrow morning. Go back to sleep. I'm too awake right now. Everything's fine," Aang answered softly. Katara nodded and yawned again before snuggling back down in her sleeping bag. Aang smiled gently at his girlfriend as she fell asleep. Aang glanced at the firewood and shrugged to himself. There should be enough to keep them going through the night and to relight the fire if it went out before they woke up.

He got up and decided to go for a short walk around their camp in the woods. He might even climb a tree and count the stars. The clearing was too sheltered for him to make out the stars easily. It was a trick Monk Gyatso had taught him when he was younger and had trouble getting to sleep. Hopefully that would relax him enough to help get back to sleep, he knew from experience that he couldn't function without sleep. He did not want a repeat of that sheep island in the Fire nation. Aang got up and tossed another log on to the fire and walked out of the clearing and took a deep breath. Calm nights like this always felt good, especially now that the weather was getting warmer. He was about to jump up the nearest tall and sturdy tree when he heard it. A sharp gasp from deeper in the forest. Too close for Aang's comfort. Aang turned away from the tree and as quietly as possible, made his way towards the sound.

 **Any guesses what that sharp gasp was?**

 **So in case it wasn't clear, this fanfic is based a few months after the last chapter in the first fanfic which was based a year after the war.**

 **Let me know what you guys think so far.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	3. Chapter 3

The first thing Danny felt as he opened his eyes was a stabbing pain in his chest and an overwhelming need to breathe. He gasped for air frantically and held his hand over his chest as his heart painfully began to beat again. Slowly he regained himself and found himself staring up at a beautiful clear starry sky. He choked out a small chuckle.

"Who knew coming back to life would hurt so much," he groaned as he pushed himself into a sitting position. He coughed as his lungs adjusted to working again. He pushed himself backwards and felt a tree trunk push into his back. He smiled gratefully and leant against it.

He then closed his eyes and took a quick internal check of how he felt. He felt different to how he'd felt before dying. He scowled in thought before he realised that he felt stronger than before. His abilities were easier to access than before. Experimentally, he opened his eyes and brought his hand up his eyes and turned it invisible. He smirked as he returned it to the visible spectrum, not feeling at all worn out. Danny pushed against the tree and got to his feet. He wobbled as he compensated for the unusual weight that his living body possessed that his spirit form didn't. That was going to take a little getting used to. He stepped away from the tree and smiled as he took his full weight easily.

He then frowned as he saw his clothes. They were paler than normal. He pulled his hair into his eyesight and gasped. It wasn't white! It was his natural black! The colour it had been before he died.

"Wow, I never thought I'd have dark hair again. I wonder what colour my eyes are," Danny muttered and scanned the trees around him, hoping to see the silvery presence of water nearby. He frowned with disappointment and annoyance. He then pushed down those feelings. It didn't matter what colour his eyes were, as long as they worked, he shouldn't care. He had to find Aang and warn him about Vlad. Then he had to go and hunt down Vlad and take him back to the spirit world somehow before the end of the week or Aang would be on his own. Danny bit his lip and slowly scanned the forest around him.

"How am I meant to find those two if I don't even know where I am? It could take me a week to find the next town!" Danny complained quietly to himself.

He stiffened as he heard a twig snap behind him and he felt a presence watching him. He turned around and grinned with relief and recognition as he saw Aang watching him suspiciously. But when Danny turned around Aang saw his face, lit by the moon shining through the sparse canopy above. He backed away into a tree and shook his head babbling to himself.

"Danny? But… but you're…. you can't be here… you're dead…. We're not near that village…. It's not your anniversary… how?... how are you…. No…. I must have fallen asleep… having a dream…. Or maybe…. Maybe I'm in the spirit world…. But you look like you did before you died," Aang rambled softly, having a panic attack and hyperventilating. Danny rushed forward and grabbed Aang shoulders to steady him. He looked dangerously faint.

"Aang calm down. It's alright. Calm down. Take a few deep breaths," Danny reassured the younger teenager.

Aang stared at Danny and slowly nodded. He held his breath and took a big gulp of air. Slowly his breathing returned to normal and Aang regained his composure.

"But how are you here?" Aang whispered. Danny smiled reassuringly at him and nodded, taking a step back.

"I've been given a special deal from the spirit of time. For one week, I'm alive again. But only for this week, after that I'm going back to the spirit world," Danny answered. Aang's eyes widened in surprise.

"You're alive?" Aang repeated. Danny nodded.

"Just for a week. A spirit I was trying to keep out of trouble gave me the slip and escaped into the living world," Danny explained. Aang frowned.

"So, you were sent to warn me and hunt down that spirit?" Aang inquired. Danny blinked in surprise before nodding.

"Yeah, how did you know that?" Danny retorted. Aang shook his head.

"I just had a dream visit from Roku. He told me that I had to find two spirits, one would help me and I had to stop the other," Aang revealed.

Danny blinked in surprise again.

"Roku knew that happened? Wow, that's impressive. Did he tell you any names?" Danny commented. Aang shook his head.

"He said he didn't know who the spirits were, just knew that it had happened. I went for a walk to clear my head since I couldn't get back to sleep. I heard something over here and found you," Aang informed him. Danny nodded in understanding.

"Yeah, I just came back. Having your heart start working again and needing to breathe was… an experience," Danny remarked. Aang stared at him. Danny smiled reassuringly at Aang.

"But I'm glad you found me. I was starting to panic about that to be honest with you. I don't have a lot of time and we need to get looking for Vlad," Danny added.

Aang blinked in shock.

"Wait, Vlad. That's the spirit you're after? Wasn't that the guy-?" Aang realised.

"That tried to sell you to the Fire nation during the war. Yeah. He's been looking for a way out of the spirit world for a few months now. I've been following him, stopping him. But like I said I lost him and he got out before I could prevent it," Danny interrupted. Aang frowned before he remembered what Danny had said the last time they'd spoken at the festival of passion.

"Wait. That spirit you were chasing in the spirit world before the festival. That was Vlad wasn't it?" Aang realised. Danny nodded.

"Yeah, I've been chasing him ever since. Thing is he's good at running and hiding. That and he also retained his bending in the spirit world. I'm worried about what he's going to do now that he's free," Danny muttered.

Aang bit his lip and shifted slightly.

"Maybe we should head back to camp. Maybe Sokka or Katara might have an idea and you can meet Suki," Aang suggested. Danny shook his head.

"I don't know. I mean, is it fair to show them that I'm alive? In a week, I'm going to die again," Danny asked. Aang shrugged.

"If we're going to go and hunt Vlad, I need to tell them. We're on our way to Ba Sing Se for an important meeting. I can't just skip it and I certainly can't not go without explaining myself," Aang pointed out. Danny nodded slowly.

"I understand. But I don't want news getting to Sam or Tucker. It isn't fair on them," Danny decided. Aang nodded.

 **So, Aang was a little surprised by seeing Danny. Any guesses on how Katara, Sokka and Suki will react? Especially since Aang didn't tell them about seeing Danny in the spirit world.**

 **Let me know what you guys think so far. I love hearing your opinions.**

 **Don't forget to check my website and facebook page regularly.**

 **jbgilroy.**

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 **remove the spaces before inputting into your search engine.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	4. Chapter 4

Danny sat at the edge of the clearing and waited for Aang, Katara, Sokka and a girl he didn't know that he guessed was Suki to wake up. He wasn't tired. He'd been dead for almost a year and a half. So that wasn't too surprising. He was starting to get hungry which Danny guessed was to be expected since he was living. Since he wasn't going to get any sleep, he'd decided to keep the fire going, collect firewood and fill up everyone's canteens. He would have prepared a breakfast for everyone too but he never learned how to cook and he didn't want to overstep. To even find the food, he'd have to search their belongings which Danny wasn't comfortable doing.

So instead, he sat on the edge of the camp and explored his abilities. They hadn't changed at all since he'd died. He could still form ice, fly, turn intangible and invisible. However he'd also discovered something. He could change his appearance. He could shift his being from his living body to his spirit form. In his spirit form, his bending was even stronger. In his living form, Danny could form a frost over things whereas in his spirit form, he could freeze things solid. It was taking a little getting used to that whenever he saw his reflection now, he wasn't a white haired teen with glowing green eyes. He was now a dark haired teen with natural pale blue eyes.

He looked up as he saw Katara sit up. She yawned and stretched. She crawled out of her sleeping bag and rolled it up before she frowned at the fire. She glanced at Aang and scowled, clearly confused. Danny shuffled around the tree he was sitting against. He didn't want Katara or the others to see him before Aang woke up to help him explain. Danny understood that this wouldn't be easy for them to accept. He'd been dead for a long time and now he was back. Danny still wasn't sure about telling them but he knew that Aang was right. They'd need help and Sokka was really smart. He was pretty good with maps too. He might be able to figure out if a spiritual temple or something might be something Vlad would work to.

He listened as Katara got ready for the day, muttering in confusion at the filled canteens and even a pot of water Danny had fetched for them. By the time Katara had started preparing the group's breakfast, Suki had woken up and gotten ready too.

"Morning Suki. Sleep well?" Katara greeted the other girl.

"Yeah, you?" Suki replied. Katara nodded.

"Yeah, Aang had a bad dream or something though. Woke me up when I heard him putting wood on the fire. He must have collected some more last night and he collected water too," Katara informed her. Suki sat down beside Katara and began to help her with the food.

"Wow, must have been some dream if he was freaked out that much. But he looks fine now," Suki commented and glanced at Aang who was still sleeping with Appa. Katara nodded, following Suki's gaze.

"I just hope that he wasn't up all night. He must have just gotten back to sleep. The fire looked like it had just been tended when I woke up," Katara muttered. Suki frowned.

"Morning!" Sokka called as he crawled out of his sleeping bag and joined them. Suki smiled at him and stood up to kiss him on the cheek.

"Shh! Aang didn't get much sleep last night. I think we should let him sleep in and leave in a few hours instead of first thing like we planned," Katara hissed at her brother. Sokka frowned.

"He's looks pretty well rested to me," he commented and the three friends turned to see the avatar stretching and getting to his feet. Katara scowled. She got up and walked over to him.

"Aang? Are you alright? Did you get back to sleep last night?" Katara asked worriedly. Aang frowned at her and nodded.

"Yeah, I did like I said I would. I went for a walk and when I came back I managed to get back to sleep," Aang answered and rubbed the sleep from his eye. Katara scowled at him and gestured to the fire.

"Then how did all that firewood end up there and how come all our canteens were filled before I woke up?" Katara demanded. Aang frowned and shrugged. But then he spotted Danny peeking around a tree and wave awkwardly. Aang smiled.

"Oh, right. Now I understand. It wasn't me Katara," Aang realised.

Katara frowned in confusion.

"Then who was it? Everyone else was asleep," Katara wondered aloud. Aang shook his head.

"I met a friend in the woods last night. They came back with me and obviously couldn't sleep," Aang explained.

"A friend?" Sokka repeated. Aang nodded.

"Aang, there's no one else here," Katara pointed out. Aang smiled and shook his head.

"There is Katara. But it's going to be a shock for you guys. That's why he hasn't announced himself yet," Aang replied. Sokka was about to ask who when they heard someone walking over to them. Everyone turned to see a dark haired, blue eyed teenager walking over nervously. Suki frowned and glanced at Sokka before seeing that the Water tribe siblings had gone pale. They turned to Aang.

"It's him. Took a bit for me to accept it too," Aang confirmed.

 **So Danny has learnt a little more about what he's capable of. In this story he's capable of pretty much what he could do in the shows.**

 **Let me know what you guys think so far of the story.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	5. Chapter 5

Katara shook her head.

"No, it's not possible. Danny died. We were there," she whispered. The teen nodded.

"Yeah, I died," Danny affirmed. Sokka snapped out of his stunned trance and screamed.

"Demon! He's a demon!" he shouted fearfully and turned to run, bumping into Suki and tripping them both over. Danny smiled.

"I'm not a demon. I got a special deal that gave me an extra week of life," Danny began. He bent down and helped Suki and Sokka to their feet. Suki smiled gratefully, completely confused by the conversation.

"Hi, I'm Danny. I'm what people call a false avatar. It's a long story. Do you mind if I explain myself to Sokka and Katara first before explaining what I am to you? Suki right?" Danny informed her. Suki shook her head with a small smile saying she didn't mind. Danny smiled gently.

"There's no really easy way to help you understand this. Aang was easier because he knew I was in the spirit world after I died," Danny commented. Katara and Sokka blinked and turned to Aang. Aang bit his lip and nodded.

"Sorry, I didn't tell you but it was never the right time to bring it up. I've only seen him twice. Straight after he died when I went into the spirit world and then at the last festival of passion," Aang admitted. Katara frowned.

"Wait, when you said you were going to check on Appa and Momo," Katara realised. Aang nodded guiltily.

"Yeah, I was actually going to talk to Danny. I didn't know what to say since I didn't want to bring him up after what happened. I'm sorry for lying to you Katara," Aang confessed. Katara scowled angrily at him.

"Katara, look at how you're reacting right now. Now think about what it would be like to know I was in the spirit world but you couldn't see or talk to me," Danny interjected, feeling bad for revealing Aang's lie.

Katara bit her lip but understood Aang's reasons and nodded.

"So, you collected all that water and wood?" Katara whispered. Danny nodded.

"I had to wait until you all woke up before I could start what I'm back for. Didn't need to sleep so I did something worthwhile. Sorry if it worried you," Danny agreed. Katara nodded slowly.

"Maybe we should sit around the fire while I explain. It could take a while," Danny suggested and motioned to the campfire. Numbly Katara and Sokka sat down beside the fire. Suki sat down beside Sokka and held his hand. She didn't understand why Danny's appearance had affected Sokka so badly but she could see that he was struggling. Aang sat down beside Danny, who prodded the fire and threw a couple of logs onto it, bringing it back to a roaring, hot fire.

"Alright. When I died, I went to the spirit world. I met Aang there a few hours later and I helped him come to terms with my death. I also asked him to watch out for Sam and Tucker. After that, I started to travel through the spirit world, talking down angry spirits, explaining things and helping certain spirits. Then about five months ago, I came across Vlad. The first false avatar. He had heard about the war ending and began to search for a way out of the spirit world. I knew that that was bad and so I started to track him down and stop him. Vlad got really good at running and I lost his trail quite a few times. Until last night I always found him before he got too far away. Avatar Yangchen warned me about Vlad breaking through a crack between our worlds. I got there as fast as I could but he slipped through the crack before I could stop him. I tried to go after him but the crack sealed itself," Danny began.

"Avatar Yangchen?" Aang repeated. Danny nodded.

"Yeah, she's really nice once you get past all the stern responsible front. She might have passed word on to avatar Roku. But since he didn't give you any names, it could have been Clockwork either," Danny explained.

"Clockwork?" Aang asked.

"Spirit of time. He has many names but I call him Clockwork," Danny answered. Aang nodded slowly and motioned for Danny to continue.

"So, like I said, Vlad escaped and Clockwork… let's just say he offered me a deal. Spirits can't leave the spirit world. Especially not spirits of the deceased. Spirits of nature like Tui and La, Hei Bai and so on, they can but they're usually bound by rules. Like they have to stay near to their shrine or temple. Or they might be bound to a corporeal body. So I couldn't just follow Vlad. But Clockwork offered me the chance to return for one week. He gave me this week of life so I could come back and find Vlad and warn Aang. But while I'm here, I'm stuck here. I can't visit the spirit world and at the end of the week, I return to the spirit world for good," Danny finished with a shrug.

Katara gasped.

"So, you'll die," she breathed sadly. Danny smiled reassuringly.

"Yeah, I guess. I came back last night. That's when I bumped into Aang. He told me that he had a dream where Roku warned him that I would be coming and that Vlad escaped," Danny agreed.

"But I didn't know who the spirits were. Roku didn't know their names," Aang added.

"So you died and came back to life?" Suki inquired. Danny nodded.

"Like I said, it's a special one-time deal. Only because Vlad is dangerous and Clockwork knew I had to go after him. But I don't think I came back to the same place that Vlad did. I've lost his trail completely," Danny replied. Sokka shook his head.

"But people who die… they don't come back! If they did why didn't Yue or mom come back?!" Sokka exclaimed. Danny smiled sadly at Sokka.

"I've seen Princess Yue in the spirit world. But I haven't seen many other people. I looked. I think they might be somewhere else or something. But like I said, it was special circumstances Sokka. Clockwork even mentioned that he's been asked before but he's never granted it before now," Danny explained.

The group fell silent. Katara shook her head and got up and finished breakfast and started to cook it and plated up five bowls before faltering.

"Um, you do need to eat right?" she muttered. Danny smiled warmly and nodded.

"For one week only, I'm just like you Katara. I'll need food and sleep I guess. I couldn't sleep last night since I just got back," Danny confirmed and gave her half a shrug. He didn't know yet exactly what he would need. Katara nodded and handed him the bowl. Once they finished Katara excused herself to wash the bowls up the river and Danny took the opportunity to explain what a false avatar was and what happened a year and a half ago for Suki. Then they packed up their belongings and got on Appa and flew to Ba Sing Se.

 **So everyone's up to speed. Any guesses what Vlad might be up to? Or where he might be?**

 **Let me know what you think so far.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	6. Chapter 6

Once they landed in Ba Sing Se, Danny and Aang had agreed to tell the meeting all about Vlad and that Danny was another spirit here to help. Danny had even shown them all that he could change into his spirit form, unintentionally blinding them in the bright white light of his transformation. Sokka pointed out how the light Danny made during his change was like when Aang entered the avatar state or the spirit world and his eyes and tattoos glowed. Aang led the way into the palace and introduced Danny in his spirit form to the Earth king and King Boomie who were already there. By that afternoon, Fire Lord Zuko had arrived, his girlfriend Mai had stayed in the Fire nation to keep everything under control while he was away. High ranking members of the White Lotus such as Iroh were also present. The last to arrive was Toph, accompanied by Sam and a few students from the university to take notes and offer advice, including Tucker.

Danny had hoped that he wouldn't have to face either of his friends during the week. It wasn't that he wasn't glad to see his friends. He just didn't want to interact with either of them and for them to figure out who he was. His white hair and green eyes were hopefully enough to stop him being recognised. He'd sworn Katara, Sokka, Suki and Aang to secrecy. The last thing he wanted to do was to hurt Sam or Tucker. Especially since it had been so hard for them after he died and that he was going to die again at the end of the week. Those were old wounds Danny really didn't want to reopen.

"Alright then! We're all gathered so does anyone have anything really important to say?" The Earth king announced. Aang stood up and cleared his throat.

"Er… yeah. It came to my attention last night that a dangerous spirit escaped from the spirit world. Another spirit has come to help us, er," Aang began nervously. Danny stood up, in his spirit form, and waved.

"Hey," Danny greeted. He wanted to avoid naming himself. He couldn't go by Danny or Sam and Tucker might know it was him and he couldn't think of anything else to go by but luckily spirits didn't always give their names. Danny sat back down and let Aang explain about what Vlad was. However as requested, Aang left out the whole one week to live for Danny. That was Danny's deadline not these people's.

Zuko stood up.

"So this spirit has ties to the Fire nation? I've never heard of him," Zuko announced. Aang nodded.

"It was during your grandfather's reign. He was executed after he failed to find me," Aang added. Zuko nodded slowly.

"Well, Fire nation executions used to be held in the Earth kingdom in front of large crowds. It was a scare tactic to try and get the Earth kingdom to surrender," Zuko recalled. Iroh stood up.

"The Fire nation were following a mysterious man during my father's reign. He led them to many spiritual places and he did promise to find the avatar. That was where the rumour that the avatar had survived came from. Until then we believed that the avatar hadn't been reborn into the Air Nomads before we decimated them," Iroh informed the meeting. Aang nodded.

"So do you have any idea where he would go? We should find this spirit as quickly as possible," Aang prompted. Iroh shook his head.

"Perhaps he would go after what he was going after during life," a white lotus member Aang didn't know the name of suggested as he stood to be heard before sitting back down.

Aang glanced at Danny, who shrugged.

"He just wanted to escape as far as I know," Danny informed them, remaining in his seat. Aang bit his lip and shrugged, still standing. Zuko and Iroh had retaken their seats. It was custom to stand to speak and to sit when not.

"When he was alive, he was after Aang," Sokka pointed out, standing and retaking his seat. Danny shook his head.

"No, not exactly. He was after the Earth kingdom. Helping the Fire nation was a means to an end," Danny recalled, he didn't stand again. Mostly because he didn't want to bring attention to himself unless he had to. He was painfully aware that Sam and Tucker had gotten very quiet and thoughtful. Danny had a feeling that they were wondering if Vlad went to the spirit world, then maybe Danny did too. And that was getting uncomfortably close to the truth for Danny's liking.

"Wait, if Vlad wants the Earth kingdom, then wouldn't he come here and attack the Earth king. With Ba Sing Se behind him, he would have the backing to take out the rest of the region," Suki pointed out, standing. The meeting muttered uneasily.

"Will Vlad be like the spirit here?" Toph asked, not bothering to stand, she wasn't one for formalities and everyone present was well aware of that. Aang glanced at Danny who shrugged.

"Er… why would that be important?" Aang inquired. Toph picked at her fingernails.

"Because, unlike most spirits, I can feel that spirit's presence. He creates vibrations on the ground. If this Vlad guy is like most spirits then I won't be able to see him. But if he's like the spirit here, then I can help. I can station my students around the palace and they can guard the king," Toph explained. Aang nodded in understanding.

"It's worth a try I guess. If that's alright with you your highness," Aang agreed. The Earth king bit his lip and nodded.

"As long as these students don't turn out to be imposters," the king answered.

 **So there's the theory. But is it right?**

 **Do you think Sam or Tucker will figure out Danny's identity? How?**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	7. Chapter 7

It was starting to get dark by the time that the meeting was over. Aang snuck food to Danny, since spirits weren't meant to eat, during the banquet-like dinner held for everyone. It wasn't hard seeing that Danny could turn invisible and float in mid-air. Toph had Sam write a letter to summon her earth-bending students and the letter was sent. The students should arrive within the next day or so. Until then the guards were on high alert.

Danny was speaking with Aang when he felt a strange presence nearby. It was similar to the feeling he got from Aang. The feeling of a spirit but yet not a spirit. Danny knew that he was sensing Raava when it came to Aang. Danny frowned. It was an even stronger feeling than when he was alive since he was in his spirit form, strong enough that he could differentiate the new presence from Aang and would be able to follow it. Before Aang could stop him he ran down the large corridor.

Sam, Toph and Tucker walked down the corridor. Sam and Tucker were catching up with each other since they hadn't seen each other in a long time. Toph had to speak with the king to discuss where she should position her students. She knocked on the door and heard a faint greeting in return. Toph pushed open the door and entered. She knew that she should bow to the king but she hated all those rules and customs found among the upper classes. She'd grown up with it and enough was enough. The king didn't hold it against her though. He understood that Toph knew those customs but ignored them, within reason. Sam and Tucker ceased their conversation and bowed to the king before respectfully stepping to one side.

"Your highness. I would like to discuss where you're comfortable for my students to go and where they're not. If you have a map, my student, Sam, can take a look at it for me," Toph announced. The Earth king smiled.

"Oh of course. I'm sure that your students won't do anything rude or compromise any privacy but if you think that's required. Would you find one of my servants for me and ask them?" The king answered and gestured to Tucker. Tucker blinked in surprise and nodded. He shuffled out of the room and sprinted down the hall to find a servant.

Toph frowned as she felt a fourth person in the room but heard no one acknowledge the newcomer.

"Sam, how many people are in this room?" Toph called. Sam scowled.

"Three, including you and me," Sam answered.

"Are you sure?" Toph inquired. Sam frowned in confusion and closed her eyes to enable herself to see with her feet and vibrations and then gasped.

"Four," she whispered. She opened her eyes and shifted into a ready position as did Toph.

"Your highness, I recommend that you come with us," Toph informed the king. But as he got to his feet a young girl appeared in front of him.

"I'm sorry but I have to do this," She muttered and then with a wave of her hands created a ball of green energy. Sam's eyes widened in shock. Before she knew it, she was running to the king and tackled him to the ground and out of harm's way as his throne was destroyed.

"I'm sorry your highness. Are you alright?" Sam quickly apologised and helped the king to his feet.

"Yes, I believe so," the king answered shakily. Toph stomped on the ground and raised a stone wall around the girl. The girl turned herself intangible and phased through the stone, startling Toph and the king. The girl looked tired but she shook her head and conjured another green sphere of energy.

Danny sprinted down the corridor and felt the presence getting stronger, Aang right behind him. He scowled with determination and jumped through a wall. Aang skidded to a stop to prevent himself crashing painfully into the wall and turned the corner and sprinted to the nearest door. Danny appeared in the throne room and quickly took in the stone wall, destroyed throne, scared king and the panting little girl holding a sphere of green energy. Danny's eyes widened in shock and he dashed forwards. He jumped into the path of the energy ball as the girl threw it at the king and Sam. It hit him squarely in the chest and he was thrown back into a wall, slamming his head against the wall and was knocked out. A band of white light appeared around his waist and separated to change him back into his living body. The girl fell to her knees, exhausted and scowled at Danny before struggling to her feet. She ran towards a wall and managed to escape by turning intangible.

Aang burst into the room.

"Twinkle Toes! She's getting away. Come on!" Toph exclaimed and she punched at the wall and made a tunnel to chase the girl. Aang nodded and followed, running after the blind earth-bender asking what happened. Sam turned to the spirit and gasped as she saw Danny laying there unconscious. She froze and her eyes filled with tears. Tucker ran into the room and got his breath back.

"They're bringing the maps now your highness. Wait, what happened? Sam?" Tucker announced and frowned at the destroyed throne room. The king shook his head and frowned at the unconscious boy that Sam was staring at transfixed. Tucker edged closer and glanced at where she was looking and gaped in shock at his deceased friend.

"Danny," he whispered.

 **Any ideas who that little girl might be?**

 **And any ideas how Sam and Tucker will react to seeing their dead friend?**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	8. Chapter 8

"I can't believe I lost her! We couldn't have been that far behind her," Toph shouted angrily. She marched back through her earth-bended tunnel out of the palace.

"Yeah, I don't get how she got away either. I mean she had to fly to be able to escape you and I didn't see her," Aang replied. Toph huffed loudly and folded her arms sulkily before frowning, hearing two people starting to have panic attacks.

"What's wrong? Did something happen?" Toph called, filled with concern. Aang looked up and gasped.

"What?! What happened Aang?" Toph demanded.

"Something that wasn't meant to happen," Aang whispered and rushed forward. Toph frowned and followed, completely confused, sometimes being blind was annoying.

Aang rushed over to the Earth king, Sam and Tucker gathered around Danny. Aang knelt beside Danny and checked that he was breathing first and sighed in relief that the teen was still alive and only seemed knocked out. He turned to Sam and Tucker next.

"I can explain. You weren't meant to find out about this, and certainly not like this," Aang informed them softly and turned to the king.

"Your highness, are you hurt? Katara can heal any injuries you may have sustained," Aang offered. The king shook his head.

"No, I'm fine. Thanks to these young women and that boy. Who is he?" The Earth king answered. Aang smiled warmly.

"A good friend of ours. He's been away for a long time," Aang answered.

Danny groaned as he came around. Aang turned to him and helped him to sit up against the wall.

"Are you alright?" Aang asked nervously. Dany blinked and shook his head slowly to get rid of the dizziness.

"Yeah, I'm fine. She caught me by surprise," Danny admitted. Aang smiled relieved.

"Danny?" Sam asked in a small, weak voice. Danny snapped his head at her and his eyes widened with horror. He glanced down at his clothes and pulled his hair down so he could see it. His eyes darted from his hair to Sam and Tucker and he stiffened. Aang bit his lip and glanced between the three friends.

"You can't be here," Sam whispered. Danny took a steadying breath and pushed himself to his feet and looked Sam directly in the eyes and then Tucker.

"I'm really sorry. I didn't want you to find out that I came back because I know it was hard for you guys after I died," Danny informed them gently.

Toph walked closer before gasping in recognition. She knew that that voice was familiar but she now remembered from where. Danny. The boy Sam and Tucker had grown up with and had died a year and a half ago. Sam shook her head.

"This can't be happening. You died! You left us! You can't be back! It's not possible," Sam decided, starting in a whisper and ending with a shout. Sam turned around and ran out of the room, hot tears starting to fill her eyes. Tucker watched Sam run out and then returned his gaze to his friend.

"If you're Danny prove it!" Tucker demanded. Danny smirked.

"How? By reminding you of how much Valerie used to hit you after you asked her out? What about how you're rubbish at lighting a campfire? What about how you used to walk into trees before you got those fancy glasses?" Danny recalled. Tucker laughed and pulled Danny into a hug.

"How is this possible?" Tucker inquired happily. Danny gently pulled away and rubbed his neck.

"I got a special deal from a spirit so that I could go after Vlad. I've been in the spirit world all this time, been tracking Vlad for five months now," Danny informed him. Tucker shook his head.

"You must have been born under a lucky star or something, this is the second time you've come back to life," Tucker chuckled.

Toph strode up to Danny and punched him in the shoulder and then pulled him into a hug.

"Ow!" Danny complained. Toph shoved him away.

"If you do anything like that again, I'll personally bury you again, this time alive!" Toph growled and gently led the Earth king away to discuss where her students would be allowed to be. Aang gaped at Toph.

"Wow! I've never seen Toph hug anyone!" Aang exclaimed. Tucker nodded in agreement. Danny laughed softly.

"Special circumstances," he commented. Aang and Tucker nodded.

"I should go and find Sam and explain myself," Danny decided.

"Want back up?" Tucker offered. Danny shook his head.

"No, I should do this alone," Danny answered and walked out of the room, rubbing the sore bump on the back of his head absentmindedly.

Danny walked through the palace, knowing Sam well enough that she'd turn to a quiet place she could earth-bend. It was her centre and it always calmed her down. And true enough, Sam was sitting quietly next to a large pond using her bending to manipulate a few pebbles into floating in the air. Danny sat down beside her.

"Sam, I'm sorry. I know it was hard for you when I died. And I'm sorry that you found out that I'm back. I knew it wouldn't be easy for you," Danny informed her softly. Sam refused to look at him.

"I don't know what I can say to be honest. I was in the spirit world and as you know there are rules. I couldn't come back before now. I only came back now because a spirit let me come back to catch Vlad after he escaped the spirit world," Danny continued. Sam stopped bending the pebbles and dropped her hands into her lap.

"I never forgot about you Sam, or Tuck. I saw Aang on my death anniversary and I asked how you guys were doing. He told me how you were studying earth-bending and metal-bending with Toph. I always knew you'd be one of the best benders out there," Danny told her gently.

Before he knew what happened, Sam was hugging him tightly, pressing her lips against his. Danny froze with shock. Sam broke the kiss and then buried her face in his chest and cried.

"I regretted that… I was never brave enough to tell you before… now we have a second chance," Sam choked out between sobs. Danny tentatively stroked Sam's hair and tried to soothe her. But honestly he was stunned. He had felt strong feelings for Sam for a long time but he didn't realise that Sam felt the same. Then his eyes widened and he shook his head. He couldn't do this. He only had six days left. He couldn't get together with Sam knowing that he'd break her heart again in a few days. Danny pulled away from her.

"I'm sorry Sam. I-I can't do this right now. I have to start searching for that girl. She's a false avatar like I was, I'm certain of it. Vlad has to be behind it. I'm sorry," Danny stammered and scrambled to his feet and purposefully walked away, avoiding the hurt clear in Sam's confused eyes.

 **Things just got complicated.**

 **Let me know what you think of the story so far.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	9. Chapter 9

The next day, Danny left the palace early, before sunrise. He'd grabbed some food for later, stuffed it in his pocket and left to roam the streets. He walked through the slowly waking city, hoping to feel a spiritual presence. He tried to stay focused but it was hard to think about Vlad when he kept remembering the kiss Sam had given him last night. He didn't know what to do. Should he explain that he wasn't going to survive for longer than a week? Should he tell her a lie and say he didn't feel the same way? Should he tell her how he felt? Danny couldn't decide so he ran away from the problem. He couldn't help but feel that if this had happened a couple of years ago, he would've been overjoyed and that kiss would have been more than just a shock and then Danny running away. Danny sat down by a fountain and groaned to himself. Things couldn't be simple! They had to get complicated!

Danny shook his head and scanned the crowd. He'd gotten a quick look at the girl before he got knocked out. She had blue eyes and black hair. She actually looked remarkably like him. If he didn't know better, he would have thought that they were related. But Danny did know better. His entire family had never felt the village and the Fire nation had burned it down. His mother, father and sister. Danny closed his eyes and recalled their faces.

His father's blue eyes, black hair slowly turning white. His loud obnoxious laugh and his large body. His mother had short reddish-brown hair. Her eyes had been similar to Sam's. She was a genius and had always had brilliant advice. She'd taught him and his sister to read. His sister, Jazz. She had long, red hair and blue eyes. She had been the one who had acquired the books on the spirit world and badgered Danny into studying them to understand his powers and new role. He sighed sadly. He'd hoped to have seen them again in the spirit world. Wasn't that how it was meant to work? You died and met back up with your deceased family members. It wasn't fair. If it was because he was special, he went to a separate place in the spirit world… then he'd always be alone. He'd never see his family again and when Sam and Tucker eventually died, hopefully from old age, they'd go to where their families were. After this week was over, chances were Danny would never see his friends again.

Danny shook his head vigorously and got to his feet again. He didn't have the time to get caught up in those thoughts. He had a deadline. He had to find and somehow catch Vlad within six days, five nights. He began to walk through the back alleys and dusty roads, hoping for any sign of the little girl or Vlad.

Aang got up and noticed that Danny had disappeared, leaving a brief note saying that he was searching the city for Vlad and that little girl. Aang found Katara and Sokka and Suki and told them that Sam and Tucker found out about Danny. Katara had gotten a little teary eyed and had rushed off to find Sam. The rest had gone to the second day of the big meeting.

Katara found Sam laying on her bed, fully dressed, staring at the ceiling. Katara knocked on the open door. Sam turned to her and gave her a small smile saying it was fine for her to come in, before returning to her staring contest with the ceiling.

"I heard that you found out about Danny coming back," Katara informed her and sat down beside the earth-bender. Sam nodded.

"Yeah," she whispered.

"Do you want to talk about it? I mean, I don't know what it's like for you since you had those feelings for him but I'm might be able to help and sometimes it's good to get stuff like this off your chest," Katara ventured.

"Have," Sam corrected. Katara frowned. Sam turned to the water-bender and gave her a sad smile.

"I _have_ feelings for Danny, Katara. Those kinds of feelings don't go away. I kissed him last night," Sam told her. Katara blinked in surprise.

"You… you kissed Danny," Katara repeated. Sam nodded.

"I thought that he had similar feelings but he ran away after I kissed him and I broke down. I haven't seen him since," Sam explained. Katara bit her lip sensing the reason why Danny ran away.

"Maybe you went a little too fast for Danny. I mean he only came back a couple of nights ago. And maybe he's trying to protect you since he died once already," Katara suggested gently. It wasn't her place to tell Sam that Danny was going to die in a few days. Danny mightn't want his friends to know that. He hadn't wanted them to even know he was alive again. Sam nodded slowly.

"I know, but I wanted to tell him how I felt since I've regretted it ever since he died. I guess emotions were running high and I didn't think clearly before I kissed him," Sam admitted. Sam had told Katara everything a week or so after Danny's death. They'd grown really close after that and they kept in contact while Katara travelled and Sam studied with Toph. Katara helped Sam up and together they walked through the Earth king's beautiful gardens surrounding the palace.

Danny didn't return to the palace until dusk, hungry and empty handed. He turned in early and left early the next day deciding to change into his spirit form and flying out of Ba Sing Se and working back through the surrounding forests and farmland. Vlad had to be close by. And Danny was certain that the little girl would be with the spirit too. He just had to track them down. The problem was Vlad wasn't bound by a deadline like Danny. He only had five days of life left.

 **I don't have much to say really about this chapter. Danny is very aware of his limited time frame to find Vlad. Sam, Tucker and Toph aren't though.**

 **Let me know what you think so far.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	10. Chapter 10

Danny landed in a small clearing in the nearby forest and groaned in annoyance. He'd been searching for four days now. He only had one day left. Finding Vlad in the living world was proving a lot harder than it was in the spirit world. At least in the spirit world Danny wasn't tied down to needing to sleep and eat. He had no idea if Vlad was still a spirit or something like what he'd become. But the little girl was just as elusive. Danny had a hunch that if he found the girl, he'd find Vlad.

Danny had spent the last four days searching and avoiding Sam and Tucker. He'd searched Ba Sing Se thoroughly numerous times and he'd searched the palace for any secret passageways that the little girl could have hidden in or used. He'd decided that he would forego as much sleep as he could afford if it meant he could find Vlad or the girl. After all it wasn't like he would be around long enough to regret it. He was on a deadline and he didn't have the time to laze around unnecessarily. He sighed and slapped his face to wake himself up more. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the sounds of the forest around him, hoping to hear or sense something wrong and put an end to this search.

His eyes snapped open as he heard a twig snap. He turned invisible and crept towards the sound and bit back a cry of triumph. He watched a little girl with black hair and blue eyes walk past him. He smirked to himself and followed her. She wiped her brow and looked around her.

"Where is he? He was supposed to find me two days ago. I hope he's not angry at me for messing up at the palace," the girl muttered worriedly. Danny scowled invisibly at her and bit his lip.

He nodded to himself as he came to a decision. Just because this girl didn't know where Vlad was right now, it didn't mean that she didn't know what he was planning. It was the break he'd been looking for. He stepped forward and in one fluid movement he wrapped an arm around her waist and pinned her arms down and covered her mouth. He flicked into visibility. Her eyes widened in fear and she began to struggle.

"Stop. I don't want to hurt you but I will if I have to. What is Vlad planning?" Danny hissed in her ear. The girl mumbled something behind his hand and scowled angrily. Danny had a feeling that her comment wasn't something he wanted to hear.

He shook his head.

"Fine, if you don't want to talk to me, you can talk to the Earth King's guards," Danny decided and lifted her into the air as he floated up into the air. The girl's eyes widened again and she struggled even more.

"Quit! If you keep this up I might drop you and this high up you'll get hurt," Danny warned quickly. The girl grumbled in annoyance but stopped struggling.

Danny flew as quickly as possible to the palace and landed outside. He put her on the ground but grabbed her wrist quickly and pulled her inside.

"If you turn intangible, you're gonna be in even more trouble and you'll be dealing with me, not Aang and Toph. Trust me kid, you can't out run me," Danny threatened, mostly because he wasn't in the mood to chase down a false avatar all across Ba Sing Se. The girl gasped and then huffed angrily but didn't phase out of his hold.

Danny, in spirit form, marched through the palace and quickly closed his eyes. He smiled and pulled the girl towards the direction Danny had sensed Aang.

"Look, I don't know where that guy is," the girl spoke up. Danny glanced at her but didn't stop walking.

"I don't want to know where he is. I want to know what he's up to," Danny retorted calmly. The girl winced. Danny pulled her into a small lounge area where he found Aang, Fire Lord Zuko and Sokka looking over a few maps and talking about old times and important matters from the after effects of the hundred year war.

Aang looked up and blinked in surprise to see Danny dragging a little girl into the room. Zuko and Sokka jumped to their feet.

"What are you doing with that girl Spirit?" Zuko demanded. The little girl glanced at Danny.

"He kidnapped me," she declared. Danny scowled at her.

"Try arrested. This is the girl who attacked the Earth King," Danny corrected and pulled the girl in front of him so the others could see her. Aang frowned at looked at Danny.

"Why are you bringing her to us?" Aang inquired. Danny gave Aang a pointed look.

"She's has a _special_ form of bending," Danny hinted. Aang and Sokka's eyes widened in realisation.

"Also, I have good reason to think that she knows something about Vlad," Danny continued for Zuko's benefit.

The girl frowned at Danny and shook her head.

"I don't know anyone called Vlad," the girl announced firmly. Aang bit his lip thoughtfully and turned to Sokka.

"Mind going to get Toph?" he requested. Sokka nodded and marched out of the lounge area to find Toph. The girl's eyes darted around the room, clearly searching for an escape route.

"You could try to run, but I'll find you. You had a head start last time and I still found you," Danny reminded her quickly. The girl glared at him angrily and folded her arms in reluctant defeat.

 **So they finally have a clue for finding Vlad. But will this little girl help them?**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	11. Chapter 11

It didn't take long for Sokka to find Toph and she brought Sam and Katara with her. Suki was busy helping with security at the palace. The group sat down in the lounge area and waited for the girl to start talking. Sam tried to catch Danny's eye but he refused to meet her gaze. Danny glanced at Aang, who nodded to Danny to start the interrogation.

"Alright, how did you meet Vlad?" Danny began. The girl shook her head.

"I don't know anyone called Vlad," the girl replied evenly. Danny glanced at Toph who shook her head.

"She's telling the truth," Toph informed him. Danny nodded.

"Yes you do. He's about this tall, blue skin, black pointed hair, red eyes. White robes and fangs," Danny described, raising an arm to roughly Vlad's height. The girl shrugged. Danny bit his lip and frowned with concern. He snapped his fingers.

"He's the one who ordered you to attack the palace five days ago," Danny added. The girl bit her lip and nodded.

"Oh, him. He never told me his name and he doesn't look anything like you said," the girl answered.

Danny waited a moment but realised that the girl wasn't going to continue.

"What does he look like now?" Danny prompted. The girl shrugged.

"Long white hair. Dark blue eyes, dark robes. He doesn't have fangs," the girl replied. Danny nodded slowly. Clearly Vlad had reverted back to the way he looked before dying.

"How did you meet him?" Danny repeated. The girl frowned and folded her arms.

"He saved my life. I passed out in the streets of Ba Sing Se for some weird reason and he told me how he protected me from a bunch of thugs. He also got me something to eat and drink while I recovered," the girl answered. Danny frowned and crouched beside her.

"And let me guess, after you passed out you felt different. Powerful, light-headed and almost tingly with energy," Danny guessed. The girl nodded slowly in astonishment. Danny nodded in understanding. The others glanced at each other in surprise.

"What's your name?" Danny asked. The girl shook her head.

"No. I'm not telling you my name without knowing how you knew that and why you want… Vlad," the girl decided. Danny sighed.

"Vlad isn't a good guy. He caused you to pass out. He made you into what you are," Danny explained. The girl shook her head and stood as tall as she could.

"No. Vlad helped me. He said that I'm special," she whispered defiantly. Danny looked at her sadly.

"I'm sorry you think that. But Vlad didn't help you. I doubt he was even telling you the truth about those thugs. He's not to be trusted. He threw both this world and the spirit world into danger by breaking through the barrier between our worlds to come back. He's not what you think he is," Danny contradicted gently.

The girl bit her lip but folded her arms. Danny sighed. He wasn't going to be able to change her mind.

"Alright, what was Vlad going to do after you killed the Earth King?" Danny asked. The girl shrugged.

"He didn't say. Doesn't matter anyway since I messed up," the girl retorted softly. Danny glanced at Aang. Danny didn't know what to say or do. This girl obviously knew more than she was willing to say but how would they get her to talk? Aang shrugged.

Danny shook his head. Drastic measures would be needed.

"Alright, you want to know why I'm interested in Vlad?" Danny began reluctantly. The girl narrowed her eyes at him.

"Because he's a spirit that escaped the spirit world. I was sent after him to take him back. Vlad lived during Fire Lord Azulon's reign and tried to use his abilities to take over the Earth Kingdom by finding avatar Aang for the Fire nation. He was a false avatar. A person that the spirits prevented from dying in order to be a temporary bridge between the spirit world and this one. I was one as well. I died about one and a half years ago. Fire nation deserters. For the last five months I've been chasing Vlad and stopping him from escaping the spirit world. Unfortunately I wasn't fast enough five nights ago. If you don't help me by answering my questions I can't find him," Danny explained. The girl frowned at him. Danny bit his lip and changed from his spirit form and into his living one. Zuko and the girl gasped.

"This is what I looked like when I was alive," Danny informed them.

The girl stared at him. Danny smiled reassuringly.

"My name is Danny," Danny added softly. The girl shook her head.

"How do I know you're telling the truth?" the girl whispered. Danny sighed.

"You don't. But maybe I can get you in contact with someone. Aang would you mind helping her into the spirit world?" Danny suggested. Aang frowned in confusion but nodded.

"Why can't you guide her?" Sam interjected, unable to help herself. Danny glanced at her before giving her a grim smile.

"I'm not allowed back until I'm done here," Danny answered vaguely. Sam looked ready to ask more questions but Danny turned to the girl.

"I promise you, if you listen to Aang, you'll be fine. And fair warning, your appearance will probably change when you're in the spirit world," Danny explained. The girl scowled sceptically but said nothing.

"Is there anywhere with a strong spiritual connection where you can meditate?" Danny inquired. Aang frowned in thought before nodding.

"There's a shrine a couple of hours away on Appa. We can go there," Aang recalled.

Danny smiled. Sokka went to inform the Earth King where Aang was going. Zuko opted to stay behind in case Vlad came after the Earth King. Aang, Danny, Toph, Sam, Katara, Sokka, the girl, Tucker, who had spotted the group heading to Appa, left the palace an hour later. And by sunset, they reached a large shrine beside a lake. Aang sat down and after a brief reassurance, the girl sat beside him.

"Alright, close your eyes and take a deep calming breath. Relax into the position and clear your mind," Aang instructed. The girl frowned but complied and before long Aang's tattoos glowed and he entered the spirit world. Danny sat beside the girl and smiled to himself when he sensed that she had finally followed Aang. Danny stayed beside them while Katara and Sam cooked the group some food and Sokka and Tucker gathered firewood and water for the night. Toph joined Danny after a while.

"So, why have you been avoiding everyone?" Toph asked suddenly. Danny blinked in surprise at her.

"I haven't been avoiding everyone exactly… I've just been busy trying to find Vlad and stop him," Danny replied softly. Toph shook her head.

"You do realise that I know when you're lying, right?" Toph muttered with a smirk. Danny sighed and nodded.

"Yeah, I know. But I haven't been avoiding everyone just Sam and Tucker," Danny admitted. Toph frowned at him.

"Why?" Toph questioned. Danny bit his lip.

"I don't want to worry you Toph. But I just don't want them to get used to me being around again," Danny answered. Toph scowled.

"You said that you were given a special deal right? How long?" Toph wondered aloud. Danny smiled grimly.

"You're smart Toph. There's a deadline. Tomorrow night. Then I have to go," Danny revealed softly. Toph gasped.

"Please, don't tell Sam and Tucker. At least not until after tomorrow. I don't want them to worry," Danny requested. Toph bit her lip and nodded slowly.

"Who knows?" Toph asked after a moment of silence.

"Aang, Suki, Sokka and Katara," Danny retorted. Toph took a deep breath and stood up.

"Food's almost ready," Toph announced and joined the group gathered around the fire. Danny glanced at Aang and the girl before getting a bowl of soup and returning to their side, ready to answer any questions when they returned and to hopefully get some answers.

 **So Toph now knows about the deadline.**

 **But will the girl's trip to the spirit world change her mind on being cooperative?**

 **I've been super busy recently but I've finally gotten around to making a poll. So go to my website and make your choice for the next fanfic I post.**

 **jbgilroy.**

 **weebly.**

 **com**

 **don't forget to take out the spaces.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	12. Chapter 12

Aang opened his eyes and smiled as he saw that he was no longer sitting on a lake shore but in the middle of a beautiful meadow during the middle of the day. He took in his surroundings and waited for the girl. After a short wait, a little girl wearing dark robes with white hair and green glowing eyes appeared beside him. She blinked in surprise and got to her feet.

"Where are we?" she whispered in awe.

"This is the spirit world," Aang answered with a reassuring smile.

"Am I dead?!" the girl exclaimed in shock. Aang shook his head.

"No, we're just visiting. Come on, there should be a spirit nearby that can help us out. Let me do the talking though, alright?" Aang replied kindly.

The girl bit her lip uncertainly and followed as Aang walked away from the small stone platform hidden in the flowers where they had entered the spirit world. After a long walk, Aang and the girl entered a forest and stopped in a small, dark clearing. Aang frowned and looked around him. His instincts, or rather Raava, were telling him to stay put. From the forest emerged a figure that Aang was very familiar with. Avatar Roku. Roku smiled warmly at Aang.

"Hello Aang. I see you have brought your friend here for some answers," Roku greeted them. Aang nodded.

"Hi Roku. I'd introduce you, but she won't tell us her name. She won't answer our questions until she's sure that Danny isn't lying to her. Think you can convince her to trust him?" Aang replied. Roku smiled.

He stepped over to the girl.

"I'm avatar Roku. What's your name?" Roku introduced. The girl shrank away from Roku nervously.

"It's alright, Roku's a friend," Aang reassured her. The girl glanced at Aang and then returned her gaze to Roku.

"I'm not comfortable giving that kind of information out when I don't know if I can even trust you," the girl announced firmly. Roku blinked in surprise before smiling at her.

"Fallen on hard times? None, or very little, family to turn to? Had bad experiences from putting your trust in people that later turned on you?" Roku guessed. The girl nodded.

"My father hated me. Called me a mistake every chance he got. Threw me out of the house before I was even eight years old. During the war, Ba Sing Se was a beacon to those in need. So I went there, hoping to turn my life around. I had to steal a passport into the city. But things weren't better at all. I lived on the streets and no one wants to take in a street urchin and a thief. I had to defend myself against other homeless people. So, you could say I've had bad experiences with strangers, yeah," the girl revealed angrily. Aang and Roku stared at the girl, completely at a loss as to what to say.

"I'm sorry, we didn't know that…" Aang muttered softly. The girl shook her head.

"Whatever, no one ever asks for my side of the story. It's always my fault whenever something bad happens around me. I was trying to help the guy that helped me. He told me that the Earth King was an imposter and deserved to be killed. He told me that I was the only person who could pull off the job," the girl replied, sadly.

Aang glanced at Roku.

"We're sorry to hear that. But perhaps you can right the wrongs you've done. And help to stop Vlad from destroying our worlds. You are a false avatar now. That means, like the avatar, you are the bridge between the living and spirit worlds. It is your duty to protect the balance in the world," Roku informed her gently. The girl scoffed and shook her head.

"I'm not interested. I don't care about preserving peace and all that stuff. I just want to make sure I get food when I need it and survive the night on the streets," the girl grumbled.

Aang bit his lip and turned to Roku. Roku glanced at Aang and flashed a helpless smile at the younger avatar. Neither knew what to say to the girl.

"Can we go now? No offense but the whole "in the spirit world" thing, kind of creeping me out. Besides, I can't see any way that you can convince me that this "Danny" character is trustworthy," the girl suggested. Roku frowned.

"For your information, Danny is extremely trustworthy. In fact, many of the spirits in the spirit world trust and respect him. Despite being a false avatar like yourself, he is regarded an equal to any avatar before him. You would do well to listen to him. He is wise beyond his years," Roku retorted sternly. Aang blinked in surprise at Roku's defensive tone. The girl raised an eyebrow at the spirit.

"That's one opinion. Not much for me to go on. Besides, if he's so great, then why would he arrest a child?" the girl challenged. Aang scowled at her.

"He could have been a lot harder on you. When you refused to talk, he could have handed you over to soldiers for interrogation, but instead he's trying to earn your trust," Aang reminded her. The girl shrugged.

"So, he's not one for torture, doesn't make him my friend. Just makes him a weak enemy," the girl replied nonplussed.

Aang ground his teeth together in annoyance, before taking a deep calming breath. The girl folded her arms and glared at him. A clear challenge to him to contradict her further. Aang shook his head and glanced at Roku. He sighed in defeat.

"Guess we should head back now. Thanks for trying Roku," Aang relented. Roku smiled sadly and gave Aang a slight bow in farewell.

"I'm sorry I couldn't help more Aang," Roku replied before disappearing back into the trees and Aang and the girl returned to the stone plinth in silence.

 **So we hear a little more about the girl's past and where her distrusting nature comes from.**

 **Let me know what you guys think of the story so far. I love hearing your thoughts.**

 **Don't forget to contribute to the poll on my website! The winner will be the next fanfic I post, guaranteed.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	13. Chapter 13

Everyone but Danny had fallen asleep by the time Aang and the girl returned from the spirit world. Danny chucked a few pieces of firewood on the fire. He turned to Aang as the glow from his tattoos faded. Danny smiled as he watched Aang stretch and the girl blink her eyes open. He grabbed some food Katara had made for Aang and the girl earlier and a canteen of water for them. He handed the bowls of food to them, earning a surprised look from the girl.

Aang smiled gratefully and sat beside the fire. The girl and Danny joined him.

"So, how was the visit?" Danny asked in a low voice, mindful of their sleeping companions. Aang glanced at the girl and shook his head.

"Sorry, Danny no luck. Roku came to us but she wouldn't listen," Aang answered. Danny sighed disappointedly. He turned to the girl.

"Why don't you want to trust us?" Danny inquired. The girl swallowed her mouthful of food. She regarded the teenager.

"Because… I've been tricked and used too many times to listen or trust someone without anything to go on," the girl replied quietly. Danny blinked in surprise and glanced at Aang. The avatar nodded.

"She told us how her father called her a mistake and threw her out. She came to Ba Sing Se to try and get a second chance. But she was still on the streets. Apparently there are a lot of unsavoury characters living on the streets in Ba Sing Se," Aang recalled.

Danny turned to the girl and nodded slowly, beginning to understand the distrustful nature of the girl.

"I see, and Vlad said that he protected you and he took care of you," Danny realised. The girl nodded sadly, watching the dancing flames and taking the occasional mouthful of food from her bowl. Danny bit his lip and turned to Aang.

"You should probably get some sleep. I'll keep watch," Danny offered. Aang raised an eyebrow and put his empty bowl on the ground beside him.

"What about you?" Aang protested. Danny smiled grimly.

"I'll be getting plenty of sleep tomorrow night," Danny reminded him. Aang eyes widened before he lowered his gaze sadly.

"I forgot that tomorrow's the seventh day," Aang muttered. Danny shrugged.

"It's fine Aang. Get some sleep," Danny reassured Aang gently. Aang nodded and walked over to Appa. Within minutes the avatar was peacefully asleep with Momo curled up beside him.

Danny stoked the fire and remained silent while the girl finished her meal.

"Wait here please. Keep an eye on camp while I clean these bowls," Danny requested, shocking the girl. Danny was trusting _her_ to protect the camp! Danny returned a few minutes later and returned the bowls to where he found them before Aang and the girl returned. Danny sat beside the girl by the fire again. The girl nervously fiddled with a fold of her clothes and waited for Danny to say something.

"You have excellent control of your powers considering that you've only had them a few days," Danny complimented. The girl blinked in surprise and glanced at him. He was staring into the fire.

"It took me a lot longer to get that kind of control. But then again I didn't have a teacher," Danny recalled. The girl bit her lip, unsure if she should say something.

"It's a shame really that we met now. I could have helped you with your powers too. But I guess the best I can do for now is give you a friendly warning. Your powers, I doubt Vlad explained this, but your powers are derived from your own spirit. Which means overuse is dangerous, so be careful about overexerting yourself. Do you know what a false avatar is?" Danny began, he turned to the girl. She shook her head slowly.

"Doesn't surprise me. I hate to say this but Vlad saw you as a weapon, not as a person that he needed to teach and nurture. Anyway, I'll not bore you with the long history of the avatar tonight. If you really want to hear it you can always come find me. So, the avatar was created when a spirit, Raava, bonded to a human that had gained all four bending forms, fire, earth, water and air. Like I said, it's a long story. But that is what an avatar is, a human with a spirit bonded to them. That's what Aang is and with proper control of your powers, you could sense Raava within him. But a false avatar is something slightly different. Spirits hate to be confined. So the idea of being bonded to a human for eternity, it's not a popular one. So when Aang was absent, the spirits searched for a way to make a new bridge between the spirit and living world and to restore balance. Vlad was the first. He was hiking up a mountain in the Earth Kingdom when he was hit by lightning. A wandering spirit saw this and pulled his spirit back into his body. He became a human bonded to by a spirit. True it was his own, but it gave him bending abilities. He used his connection to the spirit world to learn everything he could about Aang and attempted to lead the Fire nation directly to him. However he was unable to and was executed as a liar and trickster," Danny continued.

The girl frowned and turned her gaze back to the fire.

"I know that you don't think that could be the same guy. And I'm sorry, but it is. A few years ago, something similar happened to me. I was playing in a field near my village with my friends," Danny resumed and nodded to Sam and Tucker across the fire, huddled in sleeping bags, asleep.

"I got hit by lightning during a freak storm and after that I felt different. I woke up and I felt… energised. I felt powerful and invincible. Yeah, I felt light-headed at the time. Couldn't walk in a straight line but I didn't feel weak. After a month, I had figured out a few things, like what happened, that I could bend my spirit. I learned how to enter the spirit world. But after I stopped an angry spirit destroying our crop, word got out about me. The Fire nation came and burned the village to the ground. I had been warned. I thought… I thought that if I left, I could protect everyone. Sam and Tucker ran after me. But it didn't work. Everyone was killed. We're all that remain of our village," Danny paused, his gaze turning from a knowledgeable one to a sad one.

The girl looked at Sam and Tucker, suddenly realising that they had had it bad too. Before she reminded herself that they had had each other. She'd had no one!

"The next winter, Aang returned. I knew instantly. So, I decided to do my best to help him. I stopped correcting everyone that I wasn't the avatar. I didn't lie and say I was, but I didn't always say I wasn't. That way the Fire nation had to chase down two people that sounded like the avatar. I used my contacts in the spirit world to keep an eye on Aang and I used a trick I learned with my bending to keep an eye on the Fire nation. After the war, I kept travelling. Since Aang had become a lot more public, most people knew I wasn't the avatar and became angry at me. They believed that I was an imposter, and in a way I guess I was. Then about a year and a half ago I met Aang. Fire nation deserters hunted us and they set out a trap. I was killed. Ever since I've been in the spirit world helping Aang on that side. Talking down angry spirits, listening to their problems, telling them about how the world has changed. Five months ago I came across Vlad. I've been following him ever since," Danny concluded.

"What happened to Sam and Tucker?" the girl whispered. Danny quickly hid a smile of triumph. He wanted to get the girl to stop seeing him as an enemy.

"I asked Aang to look after them. Sam is now one of Toph Beifong's students. She has an earth-bending and metal-bending school. Tucker is going to a school in Ba Sing Se under recommendation from the avatar. Pretty impressive really since without those goggle things, Tucker's practically blind," Danny answered, smiling warmly at his friends. The girl glanced at Danny and hid a smile of her own. It was endearing how much care Danny had for his friends. Then the girl frowned.

"You said if I wanted the long version of your story… I should find you. Are you going away?" the girl recalled. Danny frowned sadly and shook his head.

"It's complicated. And I don't want to get into it right now. You should probably get some sleep too," Danny answered softly. The girl scowled at him but decided against pressing for details, favouring to get some sleep.

 **Danny and the girl bonding a little.**

 **Let me know what you think so far.**

 **Don't forget to check out my website and participate in the poll for the next fanfic.**

 **jbgilroy.**

 **weebly.**

 **com**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	14. Chapter 14

The next morning Katara woke to see Danny tending to the fire. Everyone else was asleep. She got up and noticed that there was plenty of firewood and water already collected.

"Did you get any sleep last night?" she inquired quietly as she got out food to make everyone breakfast. Danny shrugged.

"It's fine Katara," he replied. Katara sighed, throwing him a sympathetic frown. This was Danny's last day. The deadline was tonight. They sat in silence while Katara cooked the food and Danny kept the fire going strong. A little while later, the rest woke up and began to eat. Danny finished first and went to scout the shrine, saying he hadn't had a good look around yet.

After an hour, Danny found and examined an old carving on the other side of the shrine. It said something about a spirit with the ability to break through the barrier between the living and spirit worlds. However the shrine was so worn that the words underneath were illegible. Danny sighed before frowning at the picture. It showed a vicious wolf creature. On one side, there was thriving trees, flowers and happy looking people and animals. On the other side, there was only dead trees and corpses. He bit his lip and shook his head. Hopefully they wouldn't encounter this spirit.

He felt a spirit approaching and recognised it as the girl.

"When I said come find me, this wasn't what I meant," Danny called to her. She gasped. He smirked and turned to her.

"I told you, with practice you can sense even spirits bonded to people, that includes false avatars," Danny reminded her. She smiled nervously.

"I've been thinking… Vlad… well he never trusted me with anything. In fact, he was pretty demanding when he explained what I had to do for him. So, I decided to take a little bit of a chance. My name is Danielle and Vlad… brought me here after he found me in Ba Sing Se. He never told me why he brought me here, but he did. I doubt that will help you much but… I guess I owed you that much," the girl admitted. Danny smiled gratefully.

"Thank you Danielle," Danny thanked her and turned back to the carving.

"I just wish this wasn't a shrine dedicated to this spirit. Vlad never does anything without a reason. I think he may have plans for this shrine," Danny revealed. Danielle scowled and joined him in front of the carving.

"Those flowers only come out this time of year. In fact usually after today, they start to die," she commented, pointing to the flowers on the living side of the carving. Danny's eyes widened.

"You're sure that those flowers are these here," Danny asked, pointing to the carved flowers. Danielle nodded.

"Positive. That petal shape is unique to the flowers here. They're called snow roses as after they die, there's never any more snow. People around here call this day the first day of spring," Danielle answered calmly. Danny bit his lip.

"This can't be good. Clockwork always has a reason for everything he does. If today's the deadline… Vlad must be up to something today," Danny mumbled to himself, forgetting that Danielle was listening to him.

Before Danielle could comment though, Danny spun around on his heel and walked briskly through the shrine before he came to a stone arch in the centre. Surrounding the arch were beautiful white and blue flowers that matched the carving. Danielle followed him.

"Yeah, those are snow roses," Danielle confirmed for him, without his needing to ask. Danny walked right up to the arch and scowled at it.

"If that carving meant what I think it meant, then this is a gateway. But I don't understand what Vlad would want with it. A gateway to the spirit world would be useless to him. He spent years trying to break out. And there are other ways to and from the spirit world than this gateway," Danny muttered to himself. Danielle frowned in thought, listening to every word Danny was saying and trying to help him make sense of it.

Danny examined the arch carefully, looking for any possible carved instructions or warnings. Anything to help him understand what the arch meant to Vlad. A gateway to the spirit world. Danny was certain that was what the carving had shown. Danny resumed his search for answers throughout the shrine but hours later, he was still clueless. Danielle followed him the entire time, throwing out ideas to him or simply listening to his mutterings and trying to make sense of them.

It was midday by the time they returned to the camp. Sam and Toph were practising their bending. Sokka and Tucker were talking about Tucker's studies. Katara was cooking lunch for the group, talking with Aang. Danny joined Aang at the fire.

"Hey Danny, find anything?" Aang greeted him. Danny shrugged and tossed a log onto the fire.

"Just a carving and an archway. I think it's a gateway to the spirit world. And Danielle told me that Vlad brought her here. Vlad has a plan for this shrine… I just don't know what," Danny answered.

"Danielle?" Aang repeated, completely confused. Danielle smiled nervously and waved at the avatar, taking a seat beside Danny.

Aang and Katara glanced at each other before smiling warmly at the girl.

"Nice to finally be introduced Danielle," Katara remarked with a playful smile. Danielle smiled nervously and nodded.

"Sorry, but I was worried that you guys would be angry or something if I told you what you wanted to know," Danielle murmured. Danny placed a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry Danielle, I understand that you've had it hard and it's completely understandable that you'd have trust issues. But we'll not abandon you alright?" Danny assured the girl, giving Aang and Katara a pointed look. Aang nodded in understanding.

"That's right. We're there for you Danielle, no matter what," Aang affirmed. Danielle smiled shyly and blinked away tears of joy, overwhelmed by the kindness being extended to her. Katara spooned a portion of food into a bowl and handed it to Danielle.

"Careful, it'll be hot," she warned softly. Katara called the others over and the food was distributed.

 **Any ideas what Vlad is up to? And the little false avatar is Danielle, created by Vlad.**

 **Anyone spot the ghost I slipped in there?**

 **Let me know what you guys think so far.**

 **And don't forget to vote on my poll. It can be found on my website.**

 **jbgilroy.**

 **weebly.**

 **com**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	15. Chapter 15

Once everyone had finished eating, Aang and Danny went to the carving. Danny hoped that the avatar might be able to make sense of the illegible messages carved by the picture or see something Danny overlooked earlier. However Aang didn't have any better ideas and couldn't make out the worn messages. Danny took Aang to the archway next and again, neither could see anything of note. Aang even offered to go back into the spirit world to find some answers. But Danny didn't think that would help them.

It was mid-afternoon before they returned to the camp.

"Find anything?" Katara called to them. Aang shook his head.

"Nothing that'll help us," Danny answered. Katara smiled sympathetically and poured them some hot tea. They drank the beverage quietly beside the fire. Danny sighed and looked up at the sky.

"Wow, early moon," he commented, seeing the moon already beginning to rise. Aang nodded.

"It is," he agreed. Danny smiled to himself and closed his eyes, listening to the slight breeze rustling the leaves and the sound of birdsong in the distance.

"You never realise how different the spirit world is until you stay there," he muttered. Aang glanced at Danny.

"Guess, I should have spent a little more time sight-seeing," Danny remarked softly and opened his eyes.

"I'm sorry," Aang offered. Danny shook his head.

"Don't be Aang. It's fine. Just… it's the little things you miss. Like sunsets. Don't see them in the spirit world. It's either day or night. Butterflies and birds, unless they're spirits, you don't see them. Water, like I warned you before, mightn't actually be water in the spirit world. You need to be constantly mindful. And stars. I've always loved the night sky. But the stars in the spirit world, they're different and constantly changing," Danny explained quietly.

Aang smiled sadly and nodded.

"Still, I'm sorry. If I had been a little more careful in that forest, then you mightn't have gotten shot and you wouldn't have died," Aang recalled. Danny glanced at the avatar. He smiled and shook his head.

"Aang, that wasn't your fault. I should have realised quicker and warned you and Sam. Besides, I told you, I don't mind being dead. Like I said, it's just different in the spirit world. I bet you miss things from before the war. It's a similar feeling," Danny reassured him. Aang nodded slowly. There were things he missed. He missed his mentor, Monk Gyatso. He missed living in the air temple and playing with the other children, true that had changed before he left, but he still missed it.

Suddenly Danny scowled. He stood up and scanned the shrine and trees around their camp.

"Something wrong?" Aang inquired. Danny nodded.

"I don't know exactly how to explain it, but I feel a disturbance in the spiritual energy around here. It's not steady. It's… pulsing. Getting stronger and weaker," Danny explained with an uncertain frown. Aang got up and tried to focus his own sensitivity to spirits to sense what Danny could sense. But Aang couldn't sense anything like what Danny described. Danny closed his eyes and walked towards the feeling. Aang called after him and followed Danny closely.

Danny stumbled over stones and stray tree branches as he blindly walked through the shrine, unknowingly towards the central archway. Aang gasped as the archway came into view and he stopped. The archway was glowing a bright green and green energy spiralled in the opening. But in front of the archway stood a grinning tall man. He wore dark robes and had white long hair tied back into a neat ponytail. He didn't notice Danny blindly walk closer until he tripped in a dip in the clearing and fell.

"Ow," he groaned. He pushed himself back on to his feet.

"Alright walking with my eyes shut… not the best idea I've had," he mumbled and scanned his surroundings. He frowned as he spotted the archway and then gasped at the man, now glaring at Danny.

Danny brushed the dirt off of his robes and nodded to the man.

"Hey Vlad. Fancy seeing you here," Danny greeted the man cockily. The man raised an eyebrow and turned to Danny.

"And you are?" Vlad retorted. Danny raised an eyebrow himself.

"You mean that you don't recognise me? I told you. There's no where you can go that I can't track you to," Danny replied. Vlad snarled angrily at Danny.

"How?" Vlad demanded. Danny laughed humourlessly.

"Trade secret," Danny mockingly answered. Vlad scowled before grinning evilly.

"Well, like last time. You're too late! Within minutes, I'll have my own army of spirits. With them, I'll be able to take the Earth King's throne by force without having to resort to that brat I found in the Ba Sing Se. I won't need that pathetic excuse of a false avatar," Vlad bragged. Danny frowned in confusion.

"Army? Vlad you do realise that that many spirits coming to the living world… it'll throw the delicate balance completely off. Vlad! You're destroying both our worlds!" Danny exclaimed, with growing horror as he realised the severity of Vlad's actions.

 **And Vlad's plan is revealed.**

 **Let me know what you think.**

 **Please don't forget to check out my website and vote for the next fanfic. Any option can win, (currently it's a tie). The poll won't be open for much longer!**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	16. Chapter 16

Vlad cackled and shook his head. Vlad turned to the archway as it began to glow brighter. Danny's eyes widened and he sprinted to Vlad and tackled the man. Aang gasped and cried out. He didn't know what to do. His expression became a determined one as he decided to help Danny by watching the archway and try and prevent anything coming through. An army of spirits didn't sound good.

Danny and Vlad rolled away from the archway. They used their unique bending to turn intangible and avoid hits from the other. But Vlad was a more experienced fighter as well as larger than Danny. It didn't take long for Vlad to pin Danny down and began to beat Danny mercilessly. Danny tried to turn himself intangible but with the amount of blows he had to avoid, he couldn't focus enough to keep his concentration and intangibility going. Danny grunted in pain from each blow and struggled against the immense man. Then recalling how bright his transformation into his spirit form was, he changed and successfully blinded Vlad enough for him to loosen his grip on Danny.

Danny scrambled away from Vlad and conjured a green sphere of energy and threw it at Vlad. Caught off guard, Vlad was thrown back onto his back. He snarled angrily at Danny and created a ball of pink energy and threw it at Danny. Danny quickly formed a green shield around himself with a quick movement of his wrists and shifted into a defensive stance. Vlad ground his teeth together.

"You may have more fighting experience, but I have more experience in using my bending to protect myself," Danny commented. Vlad scowled and in a flash of black light, he changed into his own spirit form.

Aang tried to remain focused on the archway, which with each passing minute grew brighter and brighter, but the fight between the deceased false avatars was an impressive one. Aang had never seen such raw power being displayed. Danny used his green energy and even shards of conjured ice to fight Vlad while Vlad used his pink energy. Aang could see that the struggle was wearing both opponents out. They also seemed fairly evenly matched, Danny's expertise in using his bending quickly especially defensively made up for his lack of knowledge of fighting styles. Whereas Vlad's vast experience in fighting hand to hand made up for his inability to use his bending effectively. However Aang could see that Vlad's energy was far more destructive due to explosions of power from missed shots. Vlad was also a quick study and had already learned to form his own shields from watching Danny.

However with a loud boom, the gateway in the archway opened and everyone in the clearing froze and turned to the arch. Vlad grinned in triumph.

"Finally," he breathed. Danny's eyes widened in fear and he rushed forward. Vlad grabbed Danny's arm.

"Ah ah. You may have the ability to conjure ice, but _I_ can make lightning," Vlad revealed in a soft silky voice. Danny screamed as electricity flowed through his body. He crumbled to the ground and Vlad, unfazed, stepped over the gasping teen. He walked calmly up to the newly formed portal and stood expectantly.

Aang stared at the man before glancing at Danny. The avatar wanted to run over to help him, but he didn't know what he could do. Danny weakly lifted his head to watch the portal, his vision blurred. Vlad grinned as the portal rippled and a translucent person stepped out of the green archway. They wore old Fire nation armour.

"You're the first to join me. You are to be my general. And my first order, attack my audience, help will be joining us soon," Vlad evenly ordered, waving a hand towards Aang. Aang blinked in shock and quickly glanced around himself. He started to back away. The soldier glanced at Aang before he turned back to Vlad.

"Why should I serve you?" the spirit demanded coldly. Vlad raised an eyebrow. He stepped closer to the spirit and grabbed the soldier's arm. He forced electricity through the spirit, who gasped in pain.

"While other forms of bending may not affect spirits much, my form of bending does. Do as I say, and I won't hurt you. Also, you'll be able to walk amongst the living, and within reason, do as you wish. Provided it doesn't go against my orders. Now do as I say. Destroy that boy! There are others in the shrine, get rid of them as well," Vlad growled menacingly. The spirit nodded fearfully and ran after Aang, who had run off to warn the others.

Vlad smiled happily and then scowled at Danny. He grabbed the teen by the front of his robes and pulled him up to Vlad's eye level.

"Now, you and I are going to come to an understanding. You stop getting in my way… and I'll consider letting you stay in the living world," Vlad offered. Danny brushed away his spinning head and glared at Vlad. He spat in Vlad's face.

"The problem with your offer is... I don't mind being dead!" Danny hissed. Vlad angrily wiped the spittle from his cheek and glowered at the weakened teen.

"Perhaps, but that is only because I haven't finished with you yet," Vlad snarled and pumped more electricity into Danny's body. Danny screamed in agony again.

"I'll make you wish you stayed in the spirit world yet, boy! I'll make you sorry that you ever followed me," Vlad promised cruelly.

 **Trouble's brewing.**

 **Not much to say really so…**

 **The poll is closing after today so make sure to check out my website and get your votes in first!**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	17. Chapter 17

Aang sprinted through the shrine and quickly found the camp. Katara was busy sewing Sokka's trousers as he fell and ripped them an hour ago. Sokka was sitting by the fire, waiting for her to finish. Tucker and Danielle were with them. Aang ran to them and paused to catch his breath.

"Aang! Where's Danny? Did you guys find something?" Tucker exclaimed, noticing the avatar first. Aang nodded and took a few deep breaths.

"He sensed something. The archway… Vlad's using it to get a spirit army. He wants to take the Earth King's throne. Danny's still there. Fighting Vlad. I came back to warn you guys. A spirit came through. Vlad ordered it to attack us," Aang explained as quickly as he could. Katara gasped and threw Sokka's half-repaired trousers at him. Sokka scrambled to get them on while Katara water-bended as much water as possible around herself. Tucker ran to warn Toph and Sam who were practicing their earth-bending a short distance away from the camp.

Danielle got to her feet and turned to Aang.

"What about Danny?" she asked softly. Aang bit his lip and shook his head.

"I didn't know what to do. He wasn't doing too well last I saw," Aang admitted. Danielle nodded and turned towards the direction the arch was in. Aang grabbed her arm before she could leave.

"What are you doing?!" he demanded. She glanced at him before turning back to the direction the arch was in.

"I'm going to help. I can get there without being seen by that spirit. I know I can," Danielle answered. Aang frowned uncertainly.

"Who are you going to help though Danielle? Both Danny and _Vlad_ are there. Either way, you have to betray one of them," Aang inquired seriously. Danielle's determined expression and stance faltered.

She turned to Aang.

"We'll help him. But we should go with a plan and together," Aang decided. Danielle sighed sadly but nodded. He was right. Sam, Tucker and Toph returned as the Fire nation spirit reached their camp. Katara shot a tentacle of water at the spirit and froze it. The spirit looked down at the ice around it before walking through it calmly. Katara gasped in surprise before backing away nervously.

"Wait! Stop Fire nation soldier spirit person! This… this is the avatar. He's the bridge between our worlds. So, why don't you two talk this out?" Sokka suggested loudly, pushing Aang towards the spirit.

"Sokka," Aang growled in annoyance. He turned to the spirit with a nervous grin.

"Hi. I know Vlad ordered you to-er-get rid of us. But you don't have to listen to him," Aang began weakly. The soldier's eyes narrowed. Sam rolled her eyes. She stepped over to Danielle.

"Listen kid, you can use your bending to fight that spirit. Just do what you did at the palace," Sam informed the girl. Danielle glanced at Sam and shook her head.

"I can't. I was wiped after that. Danny warned me not to over use my bending," Danielle protested. Sam glared at her.

"The worst thing that'll happen is that you'll pass out. We'll get you out of here, but first we need the breathing room to do that. So, go on," Sam urged, ignoring Aang's one-sided conservation with the spirit to spare them.

Danielle took a steadying breath before nodding slowly.

"Alright, I'll try. Here goes," Danielle mumbled. Danielle scowled in concentration and formed a green sphere of energy in her hands and threw it at the spirit. It fell short and exploded on the ground in front of the spirit. He yelped in surprise before glaring at Danielle. Danielle stepped forward.

"Back off. The next time I won't miss," Danielle bluffed. Sam took her chance and grabbed a couple of packs beside the fire and sprinted to Appa. Tucker followed suit and grabbed a pack on his way to Appa as well. Sokka and Katara grabbed Aang's arms and pulled him back to the flying bison while Danielle distracted the spirit with a few well timed energy spheres.

Aang air-bended on to Appa's neck and Katara, Sokka, Tucker and Sam scrambled on the creature's back. Toph backed away from Danielle slowly and stopped beside Appa. She stamped on the ground and a pillar of rock rose in the air, becoming level with Appa's back, enabling her to simply step onto the flying bison's back. Toph narrowed her eyes and punched her hands forward and stomped on her stone pillar, creating a quicker, sloping path for Danielle to use to get to Appa as fast as possible.

Toph couldn't sense the spirit but she could feel the vibrations from the explosions Danielle created to be able to tell how far away the spirit was.

"Come on!" Toph shouted. Danielle glanced behind her and saw the slope behind her leading to Appa. She smiled gratefully and stepped back onto the slope as she fired another sphere of green energy at the spirit. She was getting very tired now. The earth wrapped around her feet and then the rock beneath her shifted and moved, zooming her to the flying bison. Danielle fell onto Appa's back and Toph stepped off her pillar and became completely blind. Aang nodded, sure that everyone was present and with the flick of the reins and a shout of "yip yip", Appa jumped into the air. The spirit ran to the place that Appa had been and cursed their escape angrily. Then with a tentative sigh, he nervously returned to his new master.

 **So, they escaped, well everyone but Danny did.**

 **What will their plan be?**

 **Let me know what you think of the story so far.**

 **By the way, the poll has ended and I'd like to thank everyone who contributed to it. The winner has been announced on my website and facebook page. An advert has been uploaded on to my facebook page too. Check it out.**

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 **Until the next chapter.**


	18. Chapter 18

They'd been circling the shrine from above for hours, desperately trying to think of a plan to save Danny and stop Vlad. Sunset was barely an hour away at this point. Danielle had recovered from stalling the soldier spirit. The best they could think of was to dive in and get Danny out of there and try again later to stop Vlad. But Aang wasn't sure that they had the time for that. Danny's deadline was that night. Also, the disturbance in the balance between the spirit and living worlds could now be felt by Aang. Danielle had started to complain about a headache a little while ago. Aang believed that the headache was because of her connection with the spirit world.

"We can't wait any longer," Aang muttered.

"But we don't have a plan," Sokka protested. Aang sighed and shook his head.

"The worlds are out of balance. We have to stop Vlad. This is bigger than Danny now. If we wait too long… we'll be too late to do anything," Aang replied. Sam frowned at the avatar.

"Danny saved your life once Aang. You owe him," Sam reminded him stiffly. Aang nodded.

"I'm aware Sam. But like I said. This is bigger than any one person now. Both the spirit world and this one could be ripped apart for all I know. These spirits aren't meant to be here. I can feel it. Something bad will happen. And Danielle can feel it too. Her headache. Sokka, Katara. Remember at the Northern Water tribe. When the Fire nation killed one of the spirits," Aang explained grimly. Katara and Sokka nodded.

"Princess Yue gave her life to restore the balance," Sokka whispered sadly. Aang nodded in agreement.

"It was bigger than any one person. Princess Yue understood that," Aang affirmed gently.

Sam shook her head.

"It's not fair. Danny just came back!" Sam murmured. Aang, Katara and Sokka shared a look and Toph lowered her blind gaze in sympathy. Aang sighed and climbed over to Appa's head and took up the reins.

"Appa, take us down boy," Aang commanded gently. They couldn't afford to wait. Besides they didn't know what they were dealing with.

Appa landed in their camp clearing and his passengers clambered off.

"I'll whistle if we need you boy. Stay close but be safe," Aang muttered to the bison and affectionately patted the creature's side. He smiled as Appa grunted and walked off. Aang scanned the clearing and his eyes widened in relief as Momo's chattering came from a nearby tree. The lemur glided to Aang's shoulder and scurried around his neck.

"Momo! Oh, I'm so relieved that you're alright. Clever boy," Aang praised. Katara and Sokka smiled at the sight. The others glanced around nervously, ensuring that no spirits were trying to sneak up on them.

"Aang, you were the one that said we have to hurry," Tucker reminded the avatar. Aang blushed and nodded.

"Sorry, you're right. Let's go," Aang apologised and the group carefully crept through the shrine to the archway.

They hid behind a fallen tree trunk and began to spy on Vlad to see what they had to do. Sam gasped, quickly silenced by Sokka covering her mouth, when she saw Danny. He was back in his living form and tied to a rock. He had bruises and cuts over any exposed skin. He glared at Vlad, still in spirit form, as the man greeted each new arrival from the spirit world.

"At least he's still alive," Tucker whispered. Sam nodded and Sokka removed his hand from her mouth.

A young girl stepped through the portal and glanced at Vlad and shrank fearfully away from him. Vlad raised an eyebrow. She turned to the portal and made to return but Vlad grabbed her arm and flung her to the ground.

"No! You'll return when I say you can. Not before!" Vlad roared furiously. The young spirit whimpered.

"I think I need to show you what happens to spirits that disobey me," Vlad hissed, a sadistic grin creeping on to his face.

"Vlad! Stop! What is a little girl going to do in your army?!" Danny shouted. Vlad's grin vanished into a dark fury. Vlad turned to Danny.

"And what have I told you about speaking without permission," Vlad whispered threateningly. Danny scowled at the older false avatar. Vlad glanced at the girl trembling on the ground still.

"Pay attention girl," he commanded. Vlad then stalked closer to Danny and bent down to the teen's level. Danny's angry expression faltered briefly, betraying his fear.

"I see you still haven't learned your lesson," Vlad muttered.

He grabbed Danny's shoulder and his hand and Danny's body crackled with electricity. Danny screamed in agony. Vlad watched the teen without expression and after a minute released the teen.

"In case you had any doubts, no talking without permission," Vlad concluded. Danny's head lolled forward on to his heaving chest. Vlad turned to the young spirit and smiled sweetly at her.

"So, do you understand now?" Vlad asked. The spirit nodded and scrambled to her feet.

"What do you want me to do?" she inquired nervously, tearing her terrified gaze away from Danny. Vlad shrugged.

"Nothing yet. Go over there with the others," Vlad decided and pointed to a crowd of nervous spirits, watching Vlad fearfully. The spirit nodded and quickly complied.

Sokka had been forced to grab hold of Sam's arms and held a hand over her mouth again to keep her quiet and hidden. Tucker had looked away and covered his ears. Katara and Aang watched the scene, horrified and Toph listened with barely contained anger and disgust. Danielle stared at Vlad, horrified by the man she had believed to be a friend and potential father figure for her.

 **Just an update on how things are faring for our heroes.**

 **What do you think will happen?**

 **I promise that things will move along soon.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	19. Chapter 19

Vlad stepped in front of the portal and waited for his next arrival. Danny slowly recovered and lifted his head to watch the portal again. He hadn't been conscious for long. Vlad had beaten Danny into unconsciousness after he learned that Aang and the others escaped. Danny had woken up, tied to the rock from rope salvaged from their camp. He tried to help as many spirits as he could that had ventured through the portal unknowingly. Most had just been curious, some had gone through by accident. Vlad had finally had enough and punished Danny for interfering. A couple of spirits had tried to stop Vlad but… well they wouldn't make that mistake again. But Danny still couldn't figure out what Vlad was planning exactly. Why would a spirit want to rule the Earth Kingdom?

Danny glanced at the spirits huddled in a group to one side. Most were watching Vlad, ready to jump to attention when Vlad called for them. Some were nervously glancing at him, clearing wanting to help him but too afraid to go against Vlad. Danny smiled reassuringly at them. He was too weak to use his bending for now but if he could just rest for a minute then he'd be able to go intangible and escape. But he also needed to think of a plan. He had to stop Vlad and help the spirits that had come through. The delicate balance between the living and spirit worlds was strained and he had to repair the damage as quickly as possible. He scanned the clearing for any ideas and spotted Aang and Katara watching him worriedly. Sokka was struggling with Sam. Danny's eyes widened in shock. He quickly turned away from them and watched Vlad as he welcomed a water tribe warrior.

He glanced at the group hiding behind the tree trunk. Aang waved cautiously. Danny shook his head and jerked his head towards the trees. Danny quickly turned to Vlad, making sure he hadn't alerted the man to his friends. Vlad welcomed an Earth Kingdom farmer through the portal. Danny glanced at Aang and the others. They hadn't moved. Danny bit his lip and glanced at the sky. The sun was beginning to set. He didn't have long before he returned to the spirit world. He glanced once more at his friends before turning to Vlad and clearing his throat loudly.

Vlad scowled as he pointed the farmer to the group of spirits to wait.

"Do I need to remind you of the rules?" Vlad asked angrily.

"No, I didn't _say_ anything and you asked me a question first. I was just wondering what a dead false avatar would need with an army," Danny answered bravely. Vlad turned to Danny and raised an eyebrow.

"Very well. I told you. I want an army to take the Earth King's throne," Vlad replied. Danny nodded.

"Yeah, you did. But I don't understand why you even want to take the throne. You're a spirit. Why do you want to rule the Earth Kingdom?" Danny questioned. Vlad frowned and Danny feared that he'd taken it too far. Vlad knelt down on one knee in front of Danny.

"I was promised the throne by the Fire Lord in exchange for my help. The legends, I know the stories, were wrong. I never promised to find the avatar. I tried, yes, but I never said that I could. And the Fire Lord turned on me! He betrayed me and had me arrested and executed. All because I found out the truth about avatar Roku. I told his oldest son while I sat in my cell. The boy hadn't believed me at the time but the Fire Lord knew I was right. I warned him that this crime would hang over his family. But he wasn't willing to listen to me. I'm merely taking what I was owed. Once I have taken the Earth Kingdom, perhaps I'll have my revenge on the Fire nation's royal family," Vlad explained. Danny scowled.

"You can't do that. Fire Lord Zuko has nothing to do with what happened to you. Besides, Fire Lord Azulon didn't have the Earth Kingdom to give you. You made a bad deal," Danny exclaimed. Vlad snarled angrily at the teen. He grabbed the front of Danny's robes.

"You don't have the right to tell me what I can and can't do. They took everything from me," Vlad hissed. Danny shook his head.

"The Fire nation thought I was the avatar. They burned down my village, killed everyone there. You weren't the only one to lose things or people during the war," Danny replied. Vlad's furious glare lessened slightly before Vlad shook his head.

"No more talking," he ordered and released Danny's robes and stood up, just in time to greet an elderly female spirit as she stepped through the portal. Danny scowled. He glanced at the sky and sighed resignedly.

"Alright, no more talking. But I'm done sitting here," Danny muttered to himself and turned himself intangible.

Danny stood up and glanced at the spirits. He smiled at them and crept over to the archway, positioning himself so Vlad wouldn't see him. He ran a hand over the stone and felt the energy underneath the archway. He frowned and closed his eyes and focused on the energy he could feel. He charged his hand with his green energy and opened his eyes and watched his own energy react with the portal. He took a deep breath and nodded. He knew what he had to do. He looked up and glanced at his friends and gave them a reassuring smile before turning invisible.

Danny walked quietly over to the huddled spirits and pushed his way into the group before turning visible again. He shook away the light-headedness from using his bending while so drained.

"Listen to me closely. I'm going to push Vlad through the portal and then I'll close the portal. You guys need to get back through before it closes fully. Once you're all in the spirit world, you can use your numbers against him. Keep him there as long as possible and I'll make my way there when I can," Danny explained. The spirits smiled nervously and nodded. Danny gave them a nod and turned himself invisible again and shuffled out of the group of frightened spirits.

 **And a plan is in the works.**

 **Not much left of the story now. Let me know what you think so far.**

 **Don't forget to check out my facebook page and watch the advert for the next fanfic. Three days.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	20. Chapter 20

Danny crept over to his friends and turned visible. The group were surprised but managed to keep silent.

"Alright, I have a plan but I need back up. I'm going to try and get Vlad and all the spirits back through the portal and then close it. I have an idea of what I need to do but we need to work quickly. Tucker, Sokka. You need to keep back. Non-benders, no offense, but you're not going to be able to help. Danielle do what you can. Probably better wait until Vlad is gone and help with getting the spirits back through. Aang, Katara, Sam and Toph. You need to be careful. Vlad can throw energy spheres and they're really powerful. Also he can turn intangible like I can," Danny explained. They all nodded in understanding. Danny smiled and turned invisible again.

Everything was set, all he had to do was start it all. He glanced at the sky and saw that the sun was touching the horizon. Night fall wasn't far away and Danny wasn't sure how much time he'd have before he returned to the spirit world. He took a deep breath and turned visible and lunged at Vlad.

Aang, Katara, Sam and Toph decided to break up their attacks to gain the advantage of surprise as much as possible. They split up and spread out in the tree line. Sokka, Tucker and Danielle remained behind the tree trunk ready to jump out and help if necessary. Katara water-bended a strip of water in front of the portal and froze it. Danny and Vlad fell to the ground.

"You fool!" Vlad yelled. Danny punched Vlad while he had the element of surprise. Toph stepped out of the tree line and earth-bended the ground beneath Vlad to throw the false avatar closer to the portal.

Danny got to his feet and glanced at Toph. He then ran after Vlad as the man slowly picked himself up again, stunned by the throw. Danny barrelled into the man again and shoved him closer to the swirling green archway. Aang stepped out into the opening and sent a strong gust of wind at the man, pushing him closer again, aided by the icy ground. With one last push, Danny shoved the older false avatar into the spirit world. He touched the stone side and charged his hands with his green energy.

He gasped in pain as the portal reacted to his touch as he drew the energy into himself. The spirits rushed forward and quickly ran through the flickering portal. They whispered words of thanks to him as they passed. Danielle, Tucker and Sokka helped a few of the older spirits to get to the portal in time. As Danny drew the last of the portal's energy into himself, the archway darkened. Danny leant against the stone and shuddered with the pain of holding so much energy in his body. Spiritual energy in a living body wasn't natural. He conjured a green sphere of energy, composed mostly of the excess energy he had gained, and tossed it into the almost blackened sky. The sun had almost set now.

He sighed with relief. Vlad was back in the spirit world where he belonged and balance had been restored. He'd be returning to the spirit world in a matter of time himself and then he could track Vlad down and figure out his next step. His friends ran over to him.

"Thanks for the help guys. No way I could have done that by myself," Danny thanked them with a grateful smile.

"Are you alright?" Sam asked worriedly. Danny nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Danny answered. Sam grinned happily and pulled him into a hug. Danny quickly extracted himself gently and gave her an awkward but sad smile.

"Sorry," he murmured apologetically. Sam frowned in confusion.

"Why don't we all go back to our camp and get a fire going and I'll make us all something to eat," Katara quickly suggested.

"Great idea! I'm starving," Toph exclaimed and grabbed Sam's arm and led her away. Katara smiled at Sam and began a normal conversation. Tucker and Sokka ran after the trio of girls. Aang and Danielle hung back with Danny. Danny pushed himself gently away from the stone monument and turned to the last of the sunset. He smiled sadly at the sky and drank in the sight of the early stars.

"So, how long do you have?" Aang asked softly. Danny shook his head.

"I don't know," Danny answered with a shrug. Danielle scowled.

"What do you mean? How long until what?" Danielle questioned. Danny glanced at the girl and shook his head.

"Nothing for you to worry about," Danny replied.

Danny took a step forward and suddenly his face contorted in pain and clutched his chest. A piercing sharp pain shot through his heart and his lungs constricted. As Danny fell to the ground, he thought one thing. Time's up. Aang and Danielle ran forward.

"Danny!" Aang cried out. The others spun around and ran back to Danny.

"Danny? Danny! What's wrong?!" Sam screamed. She fell to her knees beside Danny and bent down to listen, hopefully to hear Danny's breathing, but heard and felt nothing. She put her ear to his chest and began to cry as she realised that his heart wasn't beating.

"What happened!?" she demanded. Aang shook his head.

"Danny… he wasn't given an indefinite time here. He was only… he only had a week back," Aang answered quietly. Sam gasped.

"That's why he was so obsessed with catching Vlad," Tucker realised.

"And why he ran away," Sam breathed. Katara nodded and knelt beside her friend.

"I'm sorry Sam. Danny didn't want you to know. He was trying to protect you," Katara informed her softly. Sam glanced at Katara and pulled her friend into a hug, desperate for comfort after losing Danny for a second time.

 **Clockwork, spirit of time, has great timing.**

 **Let me know what you guys think so far.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	21. Chapter 21

Danny opened his eyes and found him staring up at a starry sky on the top of a mountain. He silently traced a few stars before frowning. He groaned as he pushed himself into a sitting position.

"Spirit world. Stars like no other," Danny muttered bitterly.

"Very observant," a voice commented. Danny turned to the voice and frowned as he saw Clockwork floating behind him. Danny turned away from the spirit.

"Couldn't give me a little warning? I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye properly. I just keeled over," Danny complained sadly. Clockwork smiled knowingly.

"You knew the deadline. You should have known that you would return," Clockwork replied. Danny scoffed.

"Yeah, I knew tonight was the deadline. Besides I didn't want to worry Sam and Tucker," Danny retorted softly.

Clockwork nodded and floated closer to the teen.

"I understand that it was difficult to be so close to your friends for such a brief time. However not everything has been resolved," Clockwork informed him. Danny frowned.

"What do you mean? Vlad and all the other spirits are back in the spirit world, including myself. What else is there to resolve?" Danny replied, glancing at the spirit uncertainly. Clockwork smiled sadly.

"The question of young Danielle, Danny. She requires guidance. She was created by Vlad and as such he, and you to an extent, are responsible for anything she does. Also, Vlad needs to be dealt with more permanently. It is all well and good chasing him for eternity through the spirit world but it would only be a matter of time before a similar situation occurred again," Clockwork explained.

Danny frowned in thought.

"So… what do you have in mind?" Danny ventured. Clockwork chuckled softly.

"Like I said, very observant. I do have an idea. I can have Vlad placed in the valley of forgotten souls. There he will be trapped for, if not eternity, for many years. And I believe that a false avatar is a proper guardian for a false avatar in training. I seem to recall that you expressed a wish to teach the girl," Clockwork suggested. Danny blinked in surprise before gasping in realisation.

"Wait. In order to help Danielle… I need to be able to go to her. Meaning being able to enter and exit the spirit world with ease. What are you offering me Clockwork? A special pass in and out the living world?" Danny whispered. Clockwork shook his head and pulled out the hourglass that Clockwork had timed Danny's latest trip into the living world with.

"I'm offering another deal. You care for and teach Danielle and I return you to the living world as before. The only difference is that there will be no time limit and you would have full access to the spirit world," Clockwork answered.

Danny blinked in shock and turned back to the starry sky. This was a huge offer. A second chance at life. A proper chance for a full life. But was it fair to throw Vlad into the valley of forgotten souls for that chance? Sure the man deserved to be punished for endangering everyone's lives. Danny bit his lip nervously.

"What would me saying yes mean for Vlad?" Danny asked cautiously. Clockwork nodded.

"Well, I would recommend that Vlad be imprisoned in the valley of forgotten souls either way as it is the safest option. But before you worry about fairness, any spirit would send Vlad there. He would wander aimlessly through the valley. No harm would come to his spirit, rest assured," Clockwork answered calmly. Danny nodded slowly.

"Danny, most spirits would have agreed without question to this offer," Clockwork remarked. Danny glanced at the spirit and smiled weakly.

"I'm not most spirits," Danny replied softly. Clockwork chuckled.

"That is true. So what is your answer? I wouldn't want to leave this for too long. Your friends will be grieving I fear," Clockwork informed him. Danny's eyes widened in realisation. Danny nodded.

"Thanks Clockwork. But I want to make sure Vlad gets what's coming to him. I have to find where that portal opened into the spirit world," Danny decided. Clockwork nodded and pointed to a small pool of water, silver in the starlight.

"That portal pool will take you there. I will find you after you leave with Vlad. Then you must give your answer," Clockwork offered. Danny nodded his thanks.

Within minutes Danny climbed out of the portal pool into a misty place. The mist was so thick that he couldn't see his surroundings. He walked cautiously forwards and gradually the mist curled away to reveal a beautiful forest with uncountable numbers of treehouses. Danny walked through the trees, keeping a sharp eye out for any signs of Vlad or the other spirits. Danny strained his ears and smiled in triumph as he heard an explosion and a yell of frustration.

Danny jogged to the sound and smirked at the sight of Vlad wildly trying to fend off a crowd of spirits unsuccessfully. Danny folded his arms and walked calmly into the clearing and gently pushed himself into the centre through the crowd of spirits.

"Hey Vlad! Had enough?" Danny called, gaining everyone's attention. Vlad turned to Danny, heaving with exhaustion.

"Back for more?" Vlad gasped breathlessly. Danny raised an eyebrow.

"Seriously Vlad? You can barely stand," Danny pointed out. Vlad shook his head tiredly and put up his fists, clearly looking for a fight. Danny rolled his eyes and created a sphere of green energy and lazily tossed it at the man. Vlad was thrown back onto his back, unconscious. Danny shook his head.

"Never knows when he's beaten," he mumbled.

Danny bent down to grab Vlad's arms, ready to leave and meet up with Clockwork, still unsure of his answer. He wanted to but he wasn't sure if he should return again. Was it fair on Sam and Tucker and the others to play with their feelings like this? Danny pulled Vlad into a sitting position.

"Danny?" a young female voice called nervously. Danny froze. He knew that voice. It was one he had feared that he'd never hear again. He looked up and saw his older sister, Jazz. Her red hair and blue eyes as recognisable as ever.

"Jazz?" he breathed. She grinned broadly and rushed forward, pulling her brother into the first hug in years.

Jazz pulled away, tears in her eyes, taking in her brother's appearance.

"Wow, you've changed," she commented with a laugh. Danny looked down at himself and nodded, chuckling himself.

"This is my spirit form. Do you like it?" Danny asked nervously. Jazz giggled.

"It's wonderful little brother. So you're just visiting right?" Jazz answered worriedly. Danny's expression saddened.

"Not exactly. I died a year and a half ago. Shot by deserter Fire nation soldiers protecting Sam and Aang. Oh, Aang's the avatar. He returned the winter after you guys died. I died the following autumn," Danny explained. Jazz sighed sadly.

"Oh, I'm so sorry Danny," Jazz whispered, fresh tears in her eyes, now for her brother.

Danny smiled at her.

"Don't worry about it Jazz. I really don't mind being dead. I actually got to visit the living world for a week. I was sent after Vlad," Danny assured her, jerking a thumb at the knocked out false avatar. Jazz's sad expression morphed into a sympathetic one.

"That was probably really hard. Come on, mom and dad are in the tree house. We could probably find you some rope or something," Jazz offered. Danny grinned.

"I'd love that Jazz. I've been looking for this place for ages," Danny admitted.

 **Danny finally found his dead family. That was where the portal in the shrine was to. And the ghost depicted was an altered version of Wulf.**

 **One chapter left. What will Danny's choice will be?**

 **Let me know what you think so far.**

 **The next fanfic will be started tomorrow, so make sure you check out my facebook page and the advert for it there.**

 **Until the next chapter.**


	22. Chapter 22

Sam watched the sunrise silently, ignoring the tears slipping down her cheeks. At least she understood now why Danny had run away after she confessed her feelings for him. He'd known that he was going to die again and had been protecting her. She felt guilty about it too. She had complicated everything for him. Looking back, she realised that she had been wrong to confess her feelings so quickly. She hadn't even known if Danny was back for good or not. She had assumed. She should have waited until she was sure that he was back before telling him everything.

She glanced at the blanket behind her. Underneath lay Danny's body. They didn't know what to do with it yet. They'd probably do the same thing that they did with his first body. Sam had learned that everyone but her, Tucker and Danielle had known the truth about Danny's time alive. She sniffled quietly. She hadn't slept at all. Just like the last time Danny died, she hadn't slept that night either.

The more she thought about it, the more she realised that the signs had been there the whole time. Danny's obsession with finding Vlad, avoiding herself and Tucker. She took a shuddering deep breath and felt more tears fall down her cheeks. Even earth-bending couldn't help her calm down. She'd sat by herself the entire night watching the stars and as daylight crept across the sky, she watched the sunrise.

The weak rays of light painted the crisp morning orange. Sam decided that it was time that she tried to freshen herself up before the others got up. She rubbed away the last few tears before she buried her grief and put up her dam of indifference that she'd used for the last year and a half to hide her sorrow. She got to her feet and took out her canteen. She got a bowl and poured her water into it and splashed her face, hoping to rid her face of the tear-stains. She turned to the fire and threw a couple of logs on the embers glowing there still. If it smothered it, at least Aang wouldn't have to build another fire before fire-bending a new campfire for the group.

She threw the remaining water in the bowl into the forest and returned the bowl to Katara's pack. She then sat back down where she had spent the night. She listened to the birds waking up and beginning to sing and forage. She watched the leaves on the trees dance softly in the gentle morning breeze. She felt the sun on her slightly damp face but none of it mattered to her. Danny was gone.

Suddenly a loud gasp filled the still morning air and coughing quickly followed. Sam jumped to her feet and stared at the blanket covering Danny as it began to move. It flicked off and Danny groaned at the sudden bright light.

"I forgot how painful that was," Danny grunted as he pushed himself into a sitting position. Sam gaped at her friend in complete disbelief.

"Danny?" Sam whispered cautiously. Danny turned to her and bit his lip.

"Sorry. How long was I-um… dead this time?" Danny muttered nervously. Sam shook her head.

"Is this a dream?" she murmured in a trance-like manner, approaching Danny. Danny smiled kindly and shook his head.

"No, I'm back. This time for good," Danny answered gently. Sam's stunned expression melted into an overjoyed smile. She knelt beside him and pulled him into a bone-crushing hug.

"Really!?" she cried. Danny chuckled and nodded, returning the hug which reassured Sam further still.

"Yeah, I'm back Sam. I'm really sorry for how I've acted for the last week and I'm truly sorry for how I reacted when you kissed me," Danny apologised honestly. Sam shook her head.

"No, I understand. You didn't want me to get close. You were trying to protect me," Sam replied. Danny hugged Sam tighter.

"Forgive me," he pleaded. Sam shook her head again.

"There's nothing to forgive Danny. You were trying to do the right thing. I know that. Forgive me! I shouldn't have put you in that position," Sam retorted.

After a moment of silence filled by Danny and Sam hugging each other and Sam crying silently into his shoulder, completely overwhelmed by Danny's return. Danny gently pulled Sam away from his neck and gingerly wiped away a lingering tear at the corner of her eye. He smiled warmly at her.

"Sam, before I died…the first time, I had been working up the courage to tell you my feelings for you. I wanted to be more than friends back then as well," Danny admitted. Sam's smile widened and shook her head in disbelief.

"This has to be a dream," she whispered. Danny laughed softly.

"Nope, this is real," Danny replied.

The intimate moment was interrupted by a loud yawn and an annoyed chatter from Momo as Aang got up. Aang walked over to the fire and, with a flick of a wrist, fire-bended the glowing embers into a campfire. Aang scanned the clearing sadly before gasping at Sam and Danny.

"Danny?" Aang called softly. Danny laughed and nodded.

"I think I prefer your reaction last time," Danny joked and got to his feet. Aang shook his head and grinned. He quickly made his way over to the false avatar and hugged him.

"But how?" Aang wondered aloud. Danny smiled.

"Clockwork seems to like me. He offered me another deal. No time limit, full access to the spirit world and my bending and life and in exchange I become Danielle's guardian," Danny explained. Sam and Aang's eyes widened.

"Wait, but you never had a guardian. What's so special about this girl?" Sam interjected suspiciously. Danny shrugged.

"It's possible that Clockwork is using her as an excuse to give me this second chance. But he said that since Vlad created her, it's his responsibility and since I let him get out of the spirit world, she's my responsibility too. But Clockwork is the spirit of time. It's possible that he knows something we don't," Danny answered.

Danny, Sam and Aang sat down beside the fire and Sam began to catch up with Danny, telling him about her time with Toph and Danny told her about his time in the spirit world.

"In fact, just before I came back this time, I found a part of the spirit world I'd never been in. I found our families Sam," Danny revealed. Sam gasped.

"Really? Did they say anything?" Sam prompted softly. Danny smiled and nodded.

"I told your parents what had happened to you and they said they couldn't be prouder. They asked if you were seeing anyone… I didn't tell them what you told me before you ask. I just said I didn't know," Danny informed her. Sam smiled to herself.

"That's mom. Always wanting me to get married," Sam muttered to herself with a fond chuckle.

Aang smiled at the comment.

"Oh, when I said I knew you, a monk came over to me Aang. Monk Gyatso I think he said. He wanted me to tell you that he wasn't going to comply with the other monks. But you were gone before he could tell you. He's happy to know that you survived the war and became the avatar he knew you would become," Danny recalled. Aang blinked in shock before nodding slowly.

"Thanks Danny," Aang croaked, throat constricted with emotion. Danny smiled knowingly at the avatar and turned back to the fire, allowing Sam and Aang to think over the messages he'd delivered.

Danny smiled to himself at the memory of seeing his family again. He'd apologised for what happened and explained what he'd done. His parents had been concerned by his blatant disregard for his own safety but they said they were proud of him regardless. He may not have fought in the war but he did help the avatar by splitting the Fire nation's focus. It had been Jazz who had convinced him that he deserved this second chance he was being offered. She explained to him that by returning he wouldn't be hurting Sam and Tucker, but making them very happy.

Danny glanced at Tucker and recalled his message from Tucker's parents. His parents had been proud of their son too. They had thought that Tucker would never amount to much more than a farmer since he had been born with such bad eyesight. But Tucker had proved them wrong and was now a student at one of the most prestigious schools in the Earth Kingdom. He had a message for Katara and Sokka too from their mother. Again, she was proud of them and she wanted to Danny to tell them the truth of her death and to assure them that it wasn't Katara's fault. The only people Danny didn't have a message for was Toph and Danielle. Numerous spirits had tried to give him messages for their living loved ones but Danny and told them that he couldn't pass on messages to people he didn't know. He was sorry but he couldn't. The spirits had been disappointed but understood.

Danny tossed a log onto the fire and took a deep breath, smelling the smoky air and listening to the birdsong. It was good to be alive and he was going to enjoy it. He glanced at Danielle and smiled at her. He was going to protect her. She was a smart kid, identifying those flowers from a worn down old carving. She didn't deserve to be alone. Danny glanced at Sam and pulled her into a sideways hug. She smiled at him and snuggled into his neck. Danny vowed that he would protect Sam and be the best friend and hopefully boyfriend he could be for her. Since he got hit by lightning, he finally felt at peace with what he was and happy. Everything was how it should be. Danny was happy to be alive, his grief and guilt resolved.

 **And that is the end.**

 **I have no plans to write another fanfic after this one for now. But I hope you enjoyed reading this fanfic as much as I did writing it. Thanks to everyone who read it.**

 **I'd also like to take a moment to thank everyone who reviewed and thank everyone who took the time to contribute to the poll. The winner's first chapter will be posted today, keep an eye out for it. The winner was the Danny Phantom / Harry Potter crossover (spanning the last three books).**

 **Until the next fanfic.**


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